#RODigitalAmbassador: The young filmmaker raising awareness about Romania with humor
Eduard Florin Ilie, or Edsta as he is more widely known online, is a cinematographer and content creator whose videos stand out in a major way - they are about Romania, funny, and relatable to every Romanian.
Edsta was born in Bucharest and moved to the US in 2001, when he was 8. A year later, his passion for filmmaking led him to make stop-motion videos with LEGOs. This developed into short experimental films, and, soon enough, paying clients who were asking him to participate in film events.
At 21, Edsta moved to Los Angeles, the capital of filmmaking, and immersed himself in photography and projects. He filmed with Bella Thorne, Victoria Justice, and Nick Jonas for the independent Kode Magazine. It was at this time that his social media presence grew steadily, with him posting content with famous child actors or musical artists that he was meeting.
A few years later, Edsta moved to New York City and started working with good friend and filmmaking partner Fesal Jaber. The pair wrote and produced a short film called Take The Vax, a fictional psychological thriller based on the COVID-19 vaccine. Released on YouTube in August 2021, the film went on to win acclaim at 24 film festivals, such as Cannes World Film Festival, and it was selected for 33 other film festivals.
Now 31, the young filmmaker has worked with Lady Gaga for her Las Vegas show and was part of two Versace campaigns featuring Donatella Versace and Anne Hathaway. Meanwhile, his Instagram account grew from 34k in March of this year, to about 85k currently.
Romania Insider: Working as a camera operator in New York sounds challenging but also glamorous. What do you love about it?
Edsta: I love the fact that every project is completely different. It keeps my work environment interesting. Every new project is always a mystery. Different people have different visions, and I like to be able to translate that into a film for them.
RI: Your videos touch on Romanian sayings, food, and vampires. It's rare to see Romanian-themed reels that get so many views. How did you decide to start making them?
Edsta: I always had a passion for entertaining people through film and photography. In early March of 2024, when I had reached 34k followers, I decided to take advantage of the social media 'of course' trend and make it my own. I decided to highlight some stereotypes about being a Romanian. I didn’t expect it to perform as well as it did. When I saw how many views and shares it received, I decided to create other similar short-format videos on the topic of Romania. I thought it would be nice to start a community as a Romanian based in New York City. I wanted to make my videos universal by speaking in English and translating common Romanian words and phrases in English. My goal now is to raise awareness about Romania and to show my appreciation for the country, its people, and its culture.
RI: You manage to show little slices of Romania in New York, like a restaurant serving Romanian food. Are there other such spots?
Edsta: There are plenty of other Romanian restaurants and cafes throughout New York City. There is also a chain of supermarkets that carry a good amount of Romanian goods. I plan on visiting all of them and creating more content for people interested in learning about Romanian culture in New York City. I think it’s a great way to bring more Romanians to New York City and possibly grow the Romanian community out here.
RI: What kind of reactions do your videos get from non-Romanians?
Edsta: It seems like the majority of my non-Romanian viewers are quite entertained by my Romanian-themed videos. Some people have commented on my Romanian music selection videos, and they were surprised that they’ve heard these songs before but didn’t know that they were either sung by Romanians or sung in Romanian, such as O-Zone. They also get a kick out of the videos where I listed the weird popular Romanian sayings.
RI: What's next for you? A visit to Romania, maybe?
Edsta: A trip to Romania is a BIG dream of mine! I haven't been back since I left almost 23 years ago due to my current immigration status. I would love to come back and create some content in Romania for the English-speaking audience. In the meantime, I will continue to represent Romania to the best of my ability from here in New York City and other places throughout America. I will also continue to work on my craft as a filmmaker and as a creative artist through social media. Who knows what the future holds for me, but I am pretty excited about it!
radu@romania-insider.com
(Photo source: Luana Șeu)
