The bearers of the Golden Palm, Bear, Shell, Leopard,
Crystal Globe, Sundance Grand Prix
are among the must-see movies you can see
in # MARCH at Sofia Film Fest
2021 was a challenging year - for the whole world, as well as for cinema and its festivals. After the world's largest, most prestigious forum in Cannes missed its edition in 2020 due to the pandemic situation, last year emotions and much of the glamor returned to Croisette and in the company of his colleagues extravagant Spike Lee - head of the jury,perhaps unintentionally, announced at the very beginning of the ceremony, who was awarded the Palme d'Or and deprived the show of its culmination. French director Julia Ducourne's "Titan" stirred the spirits of critics in Cannes, but she praised the "inclusive" decision and the fact that they "invited the monsters" - a reference to her visual creations. The world's media paid special attention to the fact that Ducurno was only the second woman director to win the Palme d'Or, after Jane Campion, who received the award in 1993 for “The Piano”. The story of "Titan" introduces viewers to Alexia - who experienced a car accident as a child, with a titanium plate implanted in her head. She discovers that on a subconscious level there is a strange emotional connection with cars and then the events in her life become uncontrollable…
"Golden Bear" for best film at the Berlinale in 2021 was awarded to the new social satire of Romanian director Radu Jude "Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn". The story follows the misfortunes of teacher Amy, who realizes that her career and reputation are seriously endangered after a porn video with her participation appeared on the Internet. The focus of the plot is on social moralists and Romanian society, but the satirization of pervasive hypocrisy and collective hysteria extends beyond national borders. Radu Jude is a discovery of Sofia Meetings more than a decade ago. Almost all of his feature films have been screened at the SFF.
The new work of Serbian director Stefan Arsenievich "As Far As I Can Walk" was awarded the Grand Prize for Best Film "Crystal Globe" in Karlovy Vary in 2021. The director presents a contemporary reading of a traditional medieval epic in which African migrants play Serbian national heroes. The story is dedicated to the age-old need for everyone to find their place in the world, but it is also a tale of love. "While I Can Walk" is a co-production between Serbia, France, Luxembourg, Bulgaria and Lithuania. Producers from Bulgaria are Chuchkov Brothers, with the support of the National Film Center.
The winner of the Grand Prize for Best Film "Golden Shell" at the San Sebastian Film Festival is "Blue Moon" by Romanian director Alina Grigore. She makes a memorable directorial debut with the story of a young woman who struggles to get a higher education and escape the harassment of her loved ones. An ambiguous sexual experience with an artist prompts her to fight domestic violence.
Awarded the Golden Leopard Prize at the Locarno 2021 Documentary Competition, "Brotherhood" by director Francesco Montagnier is an impressive debut made as a joint production between Italy and the Czech Republic. The story follows three Bosnian brothers who took on heavy responsibilities in the family after their father was convicted of terrorism. "Brothers" talks about the problems caused by the inevitable choice - between belonging to an unwavering clan and the desire of young people to find their own path and identity.
With three prizes from the Sundance Festival - the Grand Jury Prize for Feature Film, the Audience Award and the Directing Award, the feature debut of Kosovo director Blerta Basholi, "Hive" proved to be one of the most amazing discoveries of the emblem. independent cinema in the United States. Based on a true story, the film recreates a woman's struggle to survive in a society subject to patriarchal prejudices in the late twentieth century, when memories of the war in Serbia have not yet faded and she has not found her missing husband…
Nominated in three Oscar categories - Best Feature Animated Film, Best Documentary and Best International Film, the personal and emotional story of Danish director Jonas Pocher Rasmussen's "Flee" is one of the most anticipated films at the 26th Sofia Film Fest! He received the Sundance Grand Jury Prize for Documentary, was nominated for the LUX Audience Award by the EP and EFA, and has already won dozens of awards from festivals around the world. "Flee" tells an unusual true story about a respected teacher who decides to marry his longtime friend. But before that he must reveal traumatic secrets kept for more than two decades. The work is a fascinating mix of clever animation and documentary realism and is among the most intimate, impactful and profound films of 2021.
The program of the 26th Sofia Film Festival also includes "Brighton 4" (Georgia-Russia-Bulgaria-USA-Monaco) by Levan Koguashvili (Tribeka Grand Prix), "107 Mothers" (Slovakia-Czech Republic-Ukraine) by Peter Kerekes (Best Cottbus Film), Ryusuke Hamaguchi's "Drive My Car" (Japan) (4 Oscar nominations), Andreas Dressen's "Rabie Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush" (Germany-France) (Screenplay and Women's Awards) role in Berlin '22), Cornel Mundruzzo's Cannes Evolution (Germany-Hungary), Radu Muntean's Intregalde (Romania), Kirill Serebrennikov's “Petrov’s Flu” (Russia-France-Germany-Switzerland), Haider Rashid's "Europe" (Iraq-Kuwait-Italy), Paul Schrader's "The Gambler" (USA-UK-China) in Venice, Pablo Laraine's "Spencer" (UK-Germany-US-Chile) for an Oscar for a female role), Jan Matuszynski's "Leave No Trace" (Poland-France-Czech Republic) and many other festival temptations.
WE ARE WAITING FOR YOU at #CINEMA!
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