Born in Petroșani, Romania in 1975, his family emigrated to Germany in 1983 and he grew up there. After finishing school he returned to Romania and from 1994 to 1999 studied film directing in Bucharest. After realising a series of short films, he made his feature film debut in 2003 with "Maria". His family drama "Poziția copilului" ("Child's Pose") won the Golden Bear at the 63rd Berlinale in 2013.

Source: 67. Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin (Catalogue)