Teodora Ana Mihai On Her Breakout Feature ‘Heysel 85’ & Plans For Her Next Film — Tokyo
Teodora Ana Mihai’s feature film *Heysel 85* has begun its international launch at the Tokyo Film Festival, where it received its Asian premiere. Inspired by the 1985 Heysel Stadium disaster, the film examines the decisions and institutional failures surrounding the tragedy, in which 39 people died before the European Cup final between Liverpool and Juventus.
The story centres on a journalist searching for his family and a mayor’s daughter who must take charge as events spiral. Mihai combined archival footage with scenes shot on 16mm to bring the material closer together, despite the format forcing production schedule cuts to manage costs. The film is due to open in Belgium on 18 November and the UK on 20 November; Mihai is also developing her fourth feature, *Two Lives*, about two brothers and their families.
In short
- *Heysel 85* premiered in Asia at Tokyo.
- The film examines failures around the 1985 disaster.
- Mihai is developing a film about two brothers.
Explained simply
The Heysel Stadium disaster happened in Brussels in 1985, before the European Cup final between Liverpool and Juventus. A crush and violence in the stands led to the deaths of 39 people, and the tragedy raised questions about stadium safety and the decisions made by organisers and authorities.
Teodora Ana Mihai is a Romanian-Belgian filmmaker whose drama uses fictional characters to explore the events and their consequences. Its central figures are a journalist trying to find his family and a mayor’s daughter who is drawn into managing the unfolding crisis.
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