TASTY CINEMA - page 3

The programme of the Balkan Competition of Sofia Film Festival traditionally includes 12 of the most successful films created in the region in the past year. We present here six of the films in this year's selection. Teona Strugar Mitevska 's latest film is Mother - an intriguing story about seven days in the life of a woman who dedicated herself to the service of others. Hope, torment, insoluble dilemmas and dramatic twists are recreated in a uniquely affecting way by the cast, led by Noomi Rapace and Sylvia Hoeks. The director is also a co-writer, together with Gotse Smilevski and Elma Tataradzic. Mitevska said in an interview that creation of this film is the fulfillment of a long-standing dream of hers, which originated during her work on the documentary project Teresa and Me - " It took me 25 years to become the woman I am today and to make "Mother" - a film that presents me as I want to be: brave, daring and free... Mother Teresa was strict, harsh, with impeccable discipline, and at the same time, for millions of people, maternally caring, beyond our understanding; she was not perfect, but she was truly remarkable... "Mother" provokes reflection and offers a different view of holiness, femininity, sisterhood and motherhood! " The premiere of the film, a co-production between North Macedonia, Sweden, Belgium, Denmark and Bosnia and Herzegovina, was in the "Horizons" programme of the Venice Film Festival. * * * Two of Turkish director Özcan Alper ’s films have participated in the International Competition of the Sofia Film Festival over the years – Autumn , awarded with the prize for Best Director in 2009, and Future Lasts Forever in 2012. His eighth feature film Early Winter will have its international premiere in Sofia! Alper uses his specific skills and mastery in shaping the dramatic accents in the story. This story is about the separation between the young, beautiful Lia and the child she created as a surrogate mother; about the relationship between her and the man of the childless family from Istanbul; about the hopeless reality in which military actions and refugee problems are part of everyday life. Melancholy, guilt, compassion intertwine with human pain in this impressive cinematic story. * * * Another film in the Balkan Competition has been included after its premiere in the "Horizons" section of Venice – Milk Teeth by screenwriter and director Mihai Mincan . The film is a co-production between Romania, France, Denmark, Greece and Bulgaria (Poli Angelova and Nikolay Todorov, Screening Emotions) and introduces the audience to a family in which one of the daughters suddenly and inexplicably disappears. The parents are faced with a dysfunctional judicial system, the family gradually loses hope but the younger 10-year-old Maria has no intention of giving up and does everything possible to find her sister. * * * The premiere of How Come It's All Green Out Here? , the second feature film by Serbian director Nikola Ležaić , was in the programmes of Pula and Karlovy Vary. The co-production between Serbia, Croatia and Bulgaria (Nikolai Mutafchiev, PREMIERstudio) is a variation on the theme "road movie", following a director who sets off for collecting his memories, together with his father and part of the family to Dalmatia, and their main task is to bury the remains of his grandmother. And although nothing special happens during this trip, some details about family relationships, related to the memory of the past and the fragments of the post-Yugoslav reality in which the characters of this story exist, sneak into the semi-autobiographical plot. * * * Otter is the latest film by Bosnian screenwriter and director Srđan Vuletić , whose feature-length debut Summer in the Golden Valley participated in the second competition programme of the Sofia Film Festival in 2004. The story, which he is telling two decades later, is once again centered on young people and their adversities in an attempt to adapt to the adult world. After a series of losses and disappointments, a shy 16-year-old girl tries to cope with her feelings for a classmate, but finds herself caught in the chaos of an emotional drama involving various victims. The film is a co-production between Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Croatia and Kosovo. * * * Touching, humorous, brutally honest and inspiring is Whites Wash at Ninety , the new feature film by Slovenian director Marko Naberšnik , based on the bestselling autobiographical novel of the same name by Bronja Žakelj. The film’s narrative follows the stages of the life of the young heroine, who is diagnosed with cancer. Despite the seemingly insurmountable trials she faces, her actions reaffirm her will and optimism. The director is the author of the third most watched Slovenian film of all time ( Rooster’s Breakfast ) and continues to create captivating cinematic narratives – his new film was nominated for the Audience Award at festivals in Sarajevo, Ljubljana, Cottbus, Skopje and others. * * * WE ARE WAITING FOR YOU AT #CINEMA! #30SofiaIFF

The latest film by Hungarian master of symbols Ildikó Enyedi - Silent Friend - premiered at the Venice Film Festival and, in addition to a Golden Lion nomination, received six awards, including the Marcello Mastroianni Prize for Best Young Actress (for Luna Wedler), the FIPRESCI Prize and the special Green Drop Award. The connection with nature and the relationships between people continue to be leading themes in the stories that Enyedi recreates with flair and skill, and the film stars the legendary Tony Leung Chiu-wai, making his debut in European art-house cinema. His role is that of a modern-day researcher, with the plot threads spanning in three time periods and focusing on the destinies of different characters. Here is what Variety and The Hollywood Reporter share in their reviews: "The film is as natural and earthy as the green flora it gazes upon... and tells the story of three characters who similarly learn to adjust their gaze and inner rhythm to the calmer patience of plant life." "Ennedi is a master with a style that combines visual poetry with delicate humor or grand ideas with everyday frailties - and she does so in a film that explores the mysterious connection of humans with the green world, but also between us." * * * Director, cinematographer and photographer Vincent Munier has dedicated his work to the connection with wildlife. For the film The Velvet Queen , which he created with Marie Amiguet in search of the extremely rare snow leopards in the high mountains of Tibet, he received the César for best documentary and premiered in the Climate Cinema section at the Cannes Film Festival. At the beginning of the millennium, Munier was the first photographer to win the Eric Hosking Award three times – a prestigious recognition of his skills from the Natural History Museum, London. His latest film is Whispers in the Woods . In an attempt to pass on his knowledge to his son, gathered over the years by his father and careful observation of wildlife, the film intertwines the perspectives of three generations in a shared fascination. A metaphysical visual story with a contemplative atmosphere, Whispers in the Woods also includes music by Warren Ellis, the famous collaborator of Nick Cave. The sound of this poetic tale is brilliant and gives the audience a chance to hear the whispers of the forest. The film urges the audience immerse themselves in contemplation of nature and imperceptibly puts man in his place - as an ordinary actor in the great universal mechanism, in which every small living creature has its role. * * * WE ARE WAITING FOR YOU AT #CINEMA! #30SofiaIFF

The Sofia Film Festival's International Competition for First and Second Feature Films is being held for the 24th year, and its jury will be responsible for awarding the Grand Prize "Sofia - City of Film", provided by the Sofia Municipality. Ralitza Petrova ’s debut feature “Godless” became a phenomenon with its success at Locarno and the Golden Leopard award, subsequently winning the Grand Prize for Best Film at Sofia Film Festival. Her next project “ Lust ” was eagerly awaited and will have its world premiere at one of the most prestigious festivals in the world – Berlinale, in the “Forum” section. The story follows Lillian, who works as a psychologist in an American prison, and after the death of her unknown father is forced to return to her hometown in Bulgaria. Passing through unresolved debts, institutional inertia and a decaying body stuck in a bureaucratic vacuum, the film traces the convergence of mourning, the body and the fragile border between power and submission. “ Lust” looks at the emptiness left by absent fathers and the burden that daughters continue to live with. The film is a psychodrama that moves between mystery, the imaginary and the ghostly - not to resolve the issues, but to trace how it shakes control and sometimes opens a gap ,” shares Ralitsa Petrova. The cast includes Snejanka Mihaylova, Nikola Mutafov, Mihail Milchev, Alexis Atmadjov; the cinematographer is Julian Atanasov. The film is produced by its screenwriter and director for Aporia Filmworks (Bulgaria), in collaboration with Poli Angelova and Nikolay Todorov for Screening Emotions (Bulgaria), with the support of the Bulgarian NFC Agency. The co-producers are the Danish company Snowglobe and the Swedish company Silver Films, with the support of the Danish Film Institute, Film I Vast and Eurimages. * * * " Women Out of Order " is the second full-length feature film by Alexander Kossev , whom the audience know as the director of the successful and beloved film "Petya of My Petya", watched by over 100,000 viewers in Bulgarian cinemas. The plot of the new work, whose screenwriter is Neli Dimitrova, intertwines the stories of four women, each of whom is at a different stage of her life. And although their problems are of a completely different nature, all four cannot get rid of the obsessive feeling that the meaninglessness around them is increasingly overwhelming. In conflict with age, femininity, love and pain, they desire change - extreme, painful, and unconditionally life-giving. Their emotions are conveyed by the actors Silvia Lulcheva, Albena Pavlova, Elena Atanasova, Alexandra Kostova, Vladimir Penev, Julian Vergov and others. The film's cinematographer is Mihail Yanakiev, the music is by Georgi Strezov, and the producer is Nikolay Urumov (Auris Film / BOF Pictures). Stay tuned for information about the other films in the International Competition and the programme of the 30th Sofia Film Festival! * * * WE ARE WAITING FOR YOU AT #CINEMA! #30SofiaIFF

One of the most significant directors of contemporary cinema – David Mackenzie will be among the dearest guests of the 30th Sofia Film Festival and will receive the SIFF Special Award. David Mackenzie was born in 1966. The audience of Sofia Film Festival knows him well since his debut film “The Last Great Wilderness” (2002), included in the competition program of the festival in 2003. A year later, he captivated film lovers with his existential drama “Young Adam”, which brought him worldwide popularity. A film adaptation of the novel by the Scottish poet Alexander Troki, the film won the “Michael Powell” award for best British film at the Edinburgh festival. Mackenzie’s next two films – “Asylum” (2005) and “Hallam Foe” (2007) were nominated for the “Golden Bear” at the Berlin festival. This was followed by "Spread" (2009) and the captivating "Perfect Sense" (2011) starring Ewan McGregor and Eva Green, dedicated to the meaning of love in our troubled times. In 2016, his film "Hell or High Water" premiered in Cannes, starring Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine and Ben Foster, based on a screenplay by Taylor Sheridan, which received four Oscar nominations and more than 40 awards from around the world. In 2012, David Mackenzie was the chairman of the International Jury of the Sofia Film Festival, and now he comes with his two latest films - "Relay" (2024) and "Fuze" (2025), demonstrating his ability to combine genre traditions with dramatic human stories. Lily James and Oscar winner Riz Ahmed compete for the attention of the audience in the thriller "Fuze" - the main character helps potential whistleblowers deal with corporate offenders, while keeping his identity completely secret. One of his clients is a former employee of a biotechnology company who wants to return stolen documents in exchange for compensation. While the deal is being negotiated, the two are faced with the difficult choice between anonymity and the desire for personal contact, with one of the important questions being how to live in a world where it is increasingly difficult to remain unnoticed. According to the Financial Times, the film is a "stylish thriller that recalls 1970s classics," with "impressive work from actor Riz Ahmed." "Fuze" is a gripping and suspenseful thriller, full of unexpected twists, surprises and fast-paced action. After a World War II bomb is discovered on a construction site in a busy area of ​​London, the authorities react in a flash, determined to protect the many innocent bystanders nearby. Time runs out and it gradually becomes clear that no one can be trusted. The fast-paced "Fuze" is written by Ben Hopkins. The cast includes Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Sam Worthington, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Theo James. In the tradition of gritty thrillers, combining elements of a crime mystery with the tense rhythm of skillfully constructed action, "Fuze" will captivate the attention of viewers in the program of the 30th Sofia Film Festival in March. David Mackenzie's visit to the 30th Sofia Film Festival is in partnership with the British Council, Sofia and marks the 35th anniversary of an exceptionally fruitful collaboration. * * * WE ARE WAITING FOR YOU at #CINEMA! #30SofiaIFF

On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the birth of Václav Havel , one of the most prominent figures of the European 20th century, the 30th Sofia International Film Festival in partnership with the Czech Center presents a special panorama of Czech films dedicated to the life, ideas and creative legacy of the playwright, dissident and statesman, who became a symbol of freedom and moral responsibility. The panorama, provided with the assistance of the Czech Center in Sofia , brings together documentary portraits and feature films revealing Václav Havel in his complexity and contradictions - as a writer and intellectual, as a man of doubt and irony, as a president, invariably guided by his conscience. Among the film highlights is the remarkable documentary Citizen Havel (2007) by Pavel Koutecki and Miroslav Janek, offering unprecedented access behind the scenes of the presidential institution. Filmed over a period of more than ten years, the film traces Havel's first terms as president of the Czech Republic - a period marked by political compromises, personal doubts and the clash between moral ideal and real power. The camera captures Havel as a man in a process of constant hesitation and self-reflection - vulnerable, ironic, sometimes tired, but consistent in his belief that politics must obey ethics. Václav Havel - Living in Freedom (2014) by Andrea Sedlačková presents a comprehensive portrait of Václav Havel, examining his life in a broader historical and cultural context. From his youth and his first theatrical successes, through dissident activities and years of repression, to his role as president and internationally recognized intellectual. The film emphasizes the idea of ​​freedom as a moral responsibility, which Havel defended both in his texts and in his public actions. Through archival footage, interviews and historical analysis, Václav Havel - Living in Freedom builds an accessible but profound story about a man who turned personal risk into a public duty. The latest documentary Havel Speaking, Can You Hear Me? (2023) by Petr Jančárek is a deeply personal and existential portrait of Václav Havel. Built on over 200 hours of archival footage shot in the last years of his life, the film reveals Havel far from the public image – as a man facing old age, illness, doubts and inevitable reckoning. Jančárek presents Havel as the “director of his own life” – with a sense of self-irony and a deep commitment to the idea that actions should be in harmony with conscience. The film received a strong international response. The feature film part of the panorama includes screen adaptations of Havel's texts and films directly related to his dramaturgy and worldview. Audience (1990) by the emblematic director Jiri Menzel and screenwriter Václav Havel is a screen adaptation of the first play from the so-called "Vanek Plays", in which the main character - a dissident writer - is forced to work in a brewery. His meeting with the master brewer develops into an absurd dialogue, oscillating between a "friendly conversation" and an interrogation. Audience is a classic example of Havel's absurdity, in which laughter and anxiety coexist. The direction of Jiri Menzel, one of Havel's closest creative associates, transforms the text into a powerful cinematic allegory of compromise, pressure and moral choice in a totalitarian society. The Beggar's Opera (1991), written by Jiri Menzel and Václav Havel, and directed by Jiri Menzel, is a loose adaptation of John Gay's classic The Beggar's Opera , reinterpreted through Havel's political and aesthetic sensibilities. The world of criminal gangs, corruption, and hierarchies of power becomes a transparent allegory of a society in which morality and law have been replaced. With Havel's typical humor and ironic distance, The Beggar's Opera reveals the mechanisms of power as a farce, behind which a cruel truth about human nature and social roles shines through. The only feature film directed by Václav Havel himself is an adaptation of his play of the same name Leaving (2011). The story of a former statesman refusing to leave his official residence becomes an absurdist meditation on the end of power, the fear of oblivion, and the inability to relinquish one's role. Leaving combines political satire, philosophical reflection, and autobiographical allusions, with many critics viewing it as Havel's belated, ironic farewell to politics. Who is Vaclav Havel Václav Havel (1936–2011) was a Czech playwright, essayist, dissident and politician, one of the leading voices of resistance against the totalitarian regime in Czechoslovakia and a key figure of the "Gentle Revolution". In 1989, he was the country's first democratically elected president, and later the first president of the Czech Republic. An author of plays marked by the absurdity and moral anxiety of the time, Havel remains a symbol of the belief that "living in truth" is a form of resistance. With this special panorama, Sofia Film Festival pays tribute to a person whose wisdom still reminds us today that freedom is not a given, but a daily choice. * * * WE ARE WAITING FOR YOU at #CINEMA! #30SofiaIFF

In one of the main roles we will see Breno Placido An intriguing return to the past times is offered by the authors of the new Bulgarian feature film Aurora - directors Georgi Stoev - Jacky , Nikola Boshnakov and their co-screenwriter Hristo Iliev - Charlie . In the era of the Cold War in the early 1950s, an Italian communist and journalist falls in love with the daughter of an industrialist convicted by the People's Court. The girl is forced to survive as a prostitute, under the protection of the official sculptor of the communist regime and with the looming threat of the insatiable sexual appetite of a high-ranking officer of the secret services. The paths of the characters in this plot are predetermined by the totalitarian reality of the not-so-distant past, and as the film's authors share: "Love is the most dangerous form of illegality, and in a world of farce and deception, escape is possible only through an even greater lie: the mock cruiser "Aurora" turns from a symbol of revolution into an absurd battering ram towards freedom." Georgi Stoev - Jacky and Nikola Boshnakov have been working together as directors on various projects since 2010. The specific style in which the famous trio Jacky, Johnny and Charlie have created over the years is unique and absolutely recognizable - a mixture of absurdity, humor, satire and a human perspective on reality. In one of the main roles in this love story the audience will see Brenno Placido, son of the famous and beloved Italian actor Michele Placido. Konstantina Georgieva, Koyna Ruseva and Hristo Garbov play the roles of the main characters, and the film also features the Italian legend Franco Nero. The cast also includes Ivana Keranova, Boyan Arsov, Deyan Macev, Bozhidar Manov, Kalin Arsov and others. "Aurora" is a co-production between Bulgaria (Ivan Tonev - ARS Digital) and Italy (Giuseppe Lepore - Bielle Re); cinematography is by Antoni Stoev, music is by Eliza Minari. Don't miss the premiere of "Aurora" on the program of the 30th anniversary Sofia Film Festival! * * * WE ARE WAITING FOR YOU at #CINEMA! #30SofiaIFF

The premiere of the incredibly curious and all-consuming documentary MegaDoc , dedicated to the creation of one of Francis Ford Coppola's most large-scale and expensive projects, Megalopolis , had its world premiere in Venice. Its author is the two-time Oscar-nominated screenwriter and director Mike Figgis ( Leaving Las Vegas ), who was given full access to the set and in Coppola's studio and preserves for future generations the reality of the creative process of the legendary creator of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now . In Figgis' words, Coppola "seems to thrive in chaos", surrounding himself with talented actors and technicians who help him turn this chaos into cinema. The dystopian epic Megalopolis is a project in which several decades and $120 million of the Coppola family's personal funds were invested. The MegaDoc includes archival footage from the turn of the century – table rehearsals with Robert De Niro, Uma Thurman, Billy Crudup, Ryan Gosling. It is a unique feeling to walk in Coppola's set and hear him, as well as a large part of the cast, in the midst of working on his mega-opus. “MegaDoc” gives us a chance to meet a unique director at his workplace, who clearly was and still is focused on his quest to control everything in the creative process. But he is also open to the unknown, loves to experiment, without being sure of the ultimate goal. In an era when Hollywood films are constructed by marketing strategies and revenue figures, Coppola’s gift is the courage with which he embraces chaos.” “The Hollywood Reporter” * * * WE ARE WAITING FOR YOU AT #CINEMA! #30SofiaIFF