At a theater in a Transylvanian tourist town, a production of Dracula takes the stage. This Dracula is not the fearful, seductive figure we expect but one who changes depending on the audience’s whims. On and off the stage, actors and spectators engage in a playful hunt to capture him. Meanwhile, a man introducing himself as a film director attempts a modern interpretation of Dracula using AI technology. In this latest work, Radu Jude pushes his formal experimentation to bold new heights. Rather than simply remaking Romania’s classic ‘Dracula,’ he uses smartphone footage and AI to dismantle and reassemble its symbolism. Combining intentionally-selected crude AI-generated images with themes of religion, politics, gender, history, and myth, he exposes and satirizes the issues facing contemporary Romania. This is an ambitious film that reflects the flood of AI technologies and virtual imagery, as well as the very meaning of representation itself. (CHO Hyunna)