Dracula is slowly withdrawing his fangs from Romania's fledgling film industry, with blood and gore making way for history and romance. Titles such as "Lurking Fear," "Vampire Journals" or the "Scariest Places on Earth" formed the bulk of output from Romania's two main studios until not long ago -- influenced by the Balkan country's legacy as the birthplace of the fictional Count Dracula. These days it's more likely to be major Hollywood productions featuring top stars, such as the American Civil War epic "Cold Mountain," starring Nicole Kidman and Jude Law, filmed in Romania in 2002. "A lot of countries fought to host this project -- the United States, Canada, Italy, the Czech Republic," said Bogdan Moncea, marketing manager at Castel Film Studios, one of the country's biggest. "It was probably the largest film budget last year" in the world, he said, without disclosing the figure. Moncea said low construction and labor costs -- around 40 percent less than in the Czech Republic -- and an unspoiled landscape, similar to how the United States looked in the 1870s, won Romania the project.

The film industry contributes less than 1 percent to the ex-communist country's gross domestic product, but industry insiders believe it doesn't have to be that way. "This figure does not correspond to the country's potential," Moncea said. "Romania can compete favorably in this industry for another 10 years." If the booming business of Romania's two main studios is any indication, the economy would certainly benefit from further development.

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