Paul Barbă Neagră

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Paul Barbă Neagră or Barbăneagră (born February 11, 1929 in Isaccea) is a Romanian film director and essayist who, starting in 1957, has directed short and medium-length documentaries on topics related to culture and the arts. Since 1964, has chosen to live in France, where he has also worked in the media (for France 2, France 3, and Radio Free Europe).

He has studied medicine and cinematography in Bucharest, graduating from the I. L. Caragiale Institute for Theater and Film Arts. Between 1957 and 1964, he worked for the film studios of Communist Romania, and, during a visit to Tours (where he was attending the local film festival), sought political asylum.

He has been awarded a first prize for the scenario of his film Versailles Palais-Temple du Roi Soleil ("Palace of Versailles, Temple of the Sun King") at the Festival International du Film d’Art (International Festival for Art Films). The film was the first in his series Architecture et Géographie sacrée ("Sacred Architecture and Geography"). To the same series belongs the documentary Mircea Eliade et la Redécouverte du Sacré ("Mircea Eliade and the Rediscovery of the Sacred").