Ioana Joca

Though born in the mythical Transylvania, Ioana moved when she was only 4 years old to Constanta, on the Black Sea Coast. She profoundly disliked this city and couldn't wait to escape. The chance came when she turned 19. She left the gloomy city for Bucharest where she studied Journalism for 4 years. She spent an extra year in Bucharest only to realise that this wasn't the place for her, either. Therefore, she managed to get a 1-year grant from the European Commission. This grant allowed her to live and work in Saarbruecken (Germany). Here she discovered that the love of her life wasn't Journalism, but Film. Luckily, another EU grant came her way. With this money, Ioana managed to make her film debut, a documentary about her grandparents. "The Grandparents" received 2 BAFTA-Scotland nominations in November 2005. Nowadays, Ioana travels between UK, UE and Romania trying to find her place in between Europe's cultures and policies. She works as a freelance Journalist and independent filmmaker.