06/03/2015 - The 19th Sofia IFF has opened with Georgi Balabanov’s The Petrov File

Bulgaria’s most important film gathering, the Sofia International Film Festival, opened its 19^th edition last night with Georgi Balabanov’s communist drama The Petrov File [+see also:
trailer
film profile]. It marked the beginning of 11 days brimming with hundreds of screenings of the freshest Bulgarian and international features and short films.

Twelve first and second features are in the running for the festival’s Grand Prix. The truly international competition will showcase films involving Japan, the UAE, Iran and Mexico as producing and co-producing countries, among others, but Europe is also very well represented. Two Bulgarian features are in with a chance of winning the festival’s awards: the much-lauded The Lesson [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Kristina Grozeva, Petar Val…
interview: Margita Gosheva
film profile] by Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov, and a debut feature, Adultery [+see also:
trailer
film profile], directed by Yavor Vesselinov.

The UK is represented by Stephanie Joalland’s The Quiet Hour [+see also:
trailer
film profile], Spain by Alvaro Brechner’s Mr Kaplan [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and Ireland by Terry McMahon’s Patrick’s Day [+see also:
trailer
film profile]. We Are Young, We Are Strong [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Burhan Qurbani hails from Germany, while No One’s Child [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], directed by Vuk Rsumovic, is produced by Serbia and Croatia. Lastly, the Hungarian production For Some Inexplicable Reason [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Gabor Reisz is also in competition.

Among the festival’s attractions, there is a tribute to Bulgarian cinema, which showcases 20 of the most famous features ever produced in the country. Movies by Valo Radev, Binka Zhelyazkova, Metodi Andonov and Rangel Valchanov will be screened, among others. The winning films from the most important festivals of 2014 will have their first screenings in Bulgaria as part of SIFF 2015, which also pays homage to director Wim Wenders, Italian actor Franco Nero and producer Karl Baumgartner as this edition’s special guests. 

The hundreds of screenings also have a market companion: the 12^th edition of Sofia Meetings (12-15 March) will help dozens of new projects to hook up with producers and find funding.

This edition’s awards will be announced on 15 March.