The Old Oak
In competition, Cannes 2023
Directed by: Ken LOACH
Country: United Kingdom
Year of production: 2023
Length: 113 minutes
Genre: drama
The Old Oak is a special place. Not only is it the last pub standing, it is the only remaining public space where people can meet in a once thriving mining community that has now fallen on hard
times after 30 years of decline. TJ Ballantyne (Dave Turner), the landlord, hangs on to The Old Oak by his fingertips, and his hold is endangered even more when the pub becomes contested territory after the arrival of Syrian refugees who are placed in the village. An unlikely friendship develops when TJ encounters a young Syrian with a camera, Yara (Ebla Mari). Can they find a way for the two communities to understand each other? And so it unfolds, a deeply moving drama about loss, fear and the difficulty of finding hope.
Sponsors: Timișoreana, Linde Gaz România
Partners: Hotel Timișoara, Renault
The project is part of the National Cultural Programme "Timisoara - European Capital of Culture in 2023" and is funded under the European Echoes programme, implemented by the Center for Projects of the Timișoara Municipality, with sums allocated from the state budget, through the Ministry of Culture budget;