Marina (60), a maternity nurse, and her husband Gosha, a railway dispatcher, have spent years collecting small bribes to afford their dream trip to St Petersburg and witness the White Nights. When Russia invades Ukraine and the travel agency vanishes with their savings, their dream — and the illusion of control — collapses. Gosha ends up in the hospital, beaten while trying to recover the money, and long-buried betrayals surface, forcing the couple to confront the lies their life was built on and to search, among the ruins, for a modicum of dignity and grace.

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This is the synopsis for Black Money for White Nights, the fifth feature by Petar Valchanov and Kristina Grozeva, the world premiere of which is taking place in competition at the upcoming Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (3-11 July).

The directors explain, "Black Money for White Nights was born of a moment when words lost their meaning and moral gravity seemed to collapse — when cynicism passed for patriotism and lies were called faith. In Bulgaria, a generation that once carried the promise of change became an echo of propaganda, renaming corruption “survival” and submission “tradition”. The film is not a protest, but an attempt to understand how this distortion feels from the inside. Marina and Gosha are not villains or heroes. They pray, love and dream, yet live in a world where deceit has become a way of breathing. Caught between survival and complicity, their quiet downfall mirrors a broader moral erosion shaping private lives and entire societies."

Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov are Bulgarian writer-directors who have been working together since film school. Their first feature, The Lesson, won the New Directors Award at San Sebastián, Glory screened in competition at Locarno, The Father won the Crystal Globe at Karlovy Vary and screened at Toronto, and Triumph competed in the Platform section of Toronto. They focus on intimate stories told with realism, subtle humor and empathy.

The cast is led by frequent Grozeva-Valchanov collaborators Tanya Shahova and Ivan Savov, alongside Margita Gosheva, Ivan Barnev and Sibila Petrova. The script was co-penned by Grozeva and Valchanov together with Decho Taralezhkov. The film is a Bulgarian-Greek co-production staged by Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov for Sofia-based Abraxas Film, alongside Konstantina Stavrianou and Irini Vougioukalou for Athens-based Graal Films, in collaboration with Bulgarian National Television and the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation (ERT). Its international sales are handled by Cercamon.

Check out our exclusive poster below: