WHERE WE USED TO SLEEP

Long ago, Geamăna was a Romanian village nestled in the Apuseni Mountains, home to nearly 1,000 people. Today, only the church spire rises above the poisonous waste of a neighboring copper mine. Nearly all the homes have disappeared beneath the toxic sludge, and almost every resident has been forced to leave. Only a handful remain. Among them is Valeria Praţa, who refuses to abandon the place she has always called home. Living alongside her beloved animals, she struggles to preserve her way of life as the contaminated landscape continues to encroach, threatening the last traces of the village and an uncertain future.

THE FILMMAKER

Matthäus Wörle was born in 1991. After graduating from high school, he studied journalism at the University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt and received a video journalism scholarship from the Mediaschool Bayern. After that, he studied documentary film at the University of Television and Film Munich. He has worked for Süddeutsche Zeitung, Bayerischer Rundfunk and Nautilusfilm. Now he is a freelance director and video journalist. His films have been screened and awarded at numerous national and international film festivals. His filmography includes the sorts LIFETIME (2018), SEALAND (2020), GEAMĂNA (2022) and PEACE LAB (2023). His first feature film WHERE WE USED TO SLEEP (2024) was selected at the Thessaloniki International Documentary FF 2024.

AWARDS AND FESTIVALS

Jury Award – Filmfestival Kitzbühel, Austria
Jury Award – Film Festival Della Lessinia, Italy
Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival, Greece
DOK.fest - International Documentary Film Festival Munich, Germany