Nadia Comaneci: The Gymnast and the Dictator

At the 1976 Montreal Olympics, Nadia Comaneci, a 14-year-old gymnast from Romania, made history by scoring the first perfect 10 on the uneven bars. Overnight, her talent and mature grace made her an international sweetheart. But when she returned to Communist Romania, her star power only went so far. As her compatriots suffered from poverty and starvation, she faced unimaginable pressure by not only her coach, Bela Karolyi, but the regime of dictator Nicolae Ceausescu to bring glory to her homeland by becoming the best gymnast in the world. Directed by Pola Rapaport (Family Secret, DFF24), this dramatic documentary explores how a young girl struggled with the weight of a nation's expectations on her shoulders. As in her autobiography Letters to a Young Gymnast, the legendary athlete tells her side of the story. (Denver International Film Festival)