The Bulgarian films "Nobody" directed by Andrey Andonov and "Monkey" directed by Dimitar Kotsev - Shosho will be shown at the first Bulgarian film festival in France. To them, the organizers of the "Bulgarian Film Festival, Paris 2017" have added some of the most impressive Bulgarian short films, many of which have won prestigious film awards. Visitors will once again delve into the plots of films such as: "Blind Vaisha" by Teodor Ushev, "Love" by Boya Harizanova, "In Red", "Love with Rain", "Plucked Flowers", "The Son" and "With Such Strength I Dreamed of You". The festival becomes a conduit of Bulgarian cinema to European citizens and has several goals. The main thing for the organizers is to introduce French and foreign cinema fans to original Bulgarian creativity, cultural exchange, and after holding several events, to help restore the increasingly empty Bulgarian cinemas.
Time for debates and discussions is provided in the festival program, and everyone will have the opportunity to contribute to cultural exchange and filmmaking.
The festival will take place on June 1st and 2nd, at the beautiful Christine 21 cinema nestled in the heart of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
The movies
Title: "Nobody"
Genre: drama / romance / mystery
Year: 2016
Duration: 96 minutes
Director: Andrey Andonov
Actors: Gergana Pletnyova, Silvia Petkova, Stoyan Radev, Kristian Milatinov, Yordanka Angelova
Synopsis: Vera is a young psychologist who returns to the Rhodope Mountains to take care of the property left to her by her deceased father. During the weekend, her boyfriend, Tony, and her friend Tanya arrive at her place, but instead of bringing peace, tension is created between them. Unexpectedly, Niki and Lily appear, settling in the neighboring villa. Niki has bought the land around Vera's house and is ready to do anything to buy hers as well. Vera needs support and empathy, but in the following days her settled life begins to change with remarkable consequences.
Title: "Monkey"
Genre: Drama
Year: 2016
Duration: 95 minutes
Director: Dimitar Kotsev – Shosho
Actors: Alexandra Kostova, Radina Borshosh, Julian Vergov, Ana Papadopoulou, Radena Valkanova, Leonid Yovchev, Valentin Ganev
Awards: "Sofia Film Festival 2016"; Audience Award…
Synopsis: The film "Monkey" is a story about two half-sisters Iva (Radina Borshosh) and Maya (Alexandra Kostova), who have a common father, Andrey (Yuliyan Vergov). Wandering through the emotional amplitudes of adolescence, their fantasies and fears, the two girls survive, each by their own rules.
SHORT FILMS
Title: "Love"
Genre: Drama
Year: 2015
Duration: 24 minutes
Director: Boya Harizanova
Actors: Viktor Ivanov, Katerina Robova, Nikola Pashov
Awards: "So Independent Film Festival", Sofia; Best Short Film; International Short Film Festival, Sapporo; Best Director...
Synopsis: Thirty-year-old Boris arrives in a Rhodope village to meet the grandparents of his deceased friend Radko, who died in an accident abroad, and to return his belongings to them. Grandma Todorka knows about his death, but hides it from her husband so as not to worsen his health and asks Boris not to tell him. The next day, when he leaves the village, Grandpa Atanas tells him that…
Title: "The Blind Vaishya"
Genre: Animation
Year: 2016
Duration: 8 minutes
Director: Teodor Ushev
Awards: Canadian Screen Awards; Best Animated Short…
Synopsis: The eight-minute 3D story tells the life of Vaisha – a girl who cannot live in the present. The reason is that with one eye she sees the past, and with the other – the future. The film shows how Vaisha simultaneously sees her mother as a child in the present and an old woman in the future. Georgi Gospodinov’s heroine is also torn between whom to marry – whether the young man or the old man. And director Teodor Ushev says that he has long wanted to make a film about the powerlessness of living now.
Title: "On Red"
Genre: tragicomedy
Year: 2016
Duration: 21 minutes
Director: Toma Vasharov
Actors: Tsvetan Daskalov, Plamena Getova, Valcho Kamarashev, Yavor Borisov, Nikolay Varbanov, Janet Yovcheva, Boris Kashev, Georgi Sirkatov
Awards: "Sofia Film Festival 2016";
Best Bulgarian Short Film; International Short Film Festival “In The Palace”, Balchik…
Synopsis: In a small Bulgarian village, a bus stops at the only intersection, whose traffic light is blocked on red. Stoyan, the bus driver, refuses to go ahead, which causes conflict. A story about the funny side of apathy, selfishness and loneliness in a social world where following the rules is a kind of misunderstanding.
Title: "Love with Rainfall"
Genre: Animation
Year: 2015
Duration: 6 minutes
Directors: Asya Kovanova, Andrey Kulev
Awards: Bulgarian Film Academy; Best Short Animation; Bulgarian Documentary and Animation Film Festival "Golden Rhyton" 2015; Best Animated Film…
Synopsis: It's about love. Forecast – sunny with showers.
Title: "With such power I dreamed of you"
Genre: Animation
Year: 2015
Duration: 3 minutes
Director: Emma Vakarelova
Synopsis: A film about the horizon of impossible love… an adaptation of Robert Desnos' poem – "With such force I dreamed of you" ("J'ai tant rêvé de toi")
Title: "The Son"
Genre: Drama
Year: 2015
Duration: 29 minutes
Director: Hristo Simeonov
Actors: Alexander Emilov, Borislav Rusev, Ivelina Stefanova, Plamena Stefanova, Lyubomir Stefanov, Lily the Dog
Awards: European Film Festival, Lecce; Best Film; Best Director; 33rd Bulgarian Feature Film Festival "Golden Rose"; Best Short Film…
Synopsis: Django is an eleven-year-old boy living with his family in an abandoned boxcar near a railroad track. Every morning, his father jumps on the buffers of passing freight trains to look for food and work in the nearby town. The father's harsh lessons must prepare his son to cope with the hardships of life that await him.
Title: "Plucked Flowers"
Genre: Drama
Year: 2015
Duration: 29 minutes
Director: Katerina Borisova
Actors: Polina Nedkova, Ahmed Yumer, Hristo Bonin, Yordanka Stefanova, Robert Yanakiev and others.
Awards: International Student Film Festival "New Wave"; Best Bulgarian Film; North Carolina International Film Awards; Best Director…
Synopsis: A young man is hospitalized who believes he is a flower. The young Ida, who is preparing for a kidney transplant, befriends him, wanting to spend an unforgettable, and perhaps last, evening. An accidentally overheard secret threatens the lives of both of them.
