Тhe film digs into the call to distant lands, cultures and adventures against the meaning of creating a “family hearth”, and it is looking for an answer to the question: Is it possible to strike a good balance between individual longing and shared family wishes?
“Snescha and Franz are my aunt and uncle. One of my brightest childhood memories is how my Austrian uncle Franz projected slides from his adventures on a big white sheet taken from the parent’s bed: skiing in Sahara, boat sailing along the Niger River... Then, during the years, I found his Super 8mm films and his unpublished books. In one of them I found a letter to Snescha and their kids in which he writes: Yes, the difference between the individual wishes and longings and the common family wishes exists. I know those contradictions and try to see them or at least hold out. I try to do more things with you, to go on and find a good balance. I hope our measurements for balance are close”, Svetoslav Draganov told FNE.
Draganov is producing through Bulgaria’s Cineaste Maudit Productions in coproduction with Katya Trichkova through Contrast Films (Bulgaria), with support from the Bulgarian National Film Center, Creative Europe MEDIA and Wiener Stadt und Landesarchiv.
The total budget is 110,000 EUR, with a 40,000 EUR gap in the postproduction funding.
Snescha and Franz was shot in 45 shooting days mainly in Austria. The shooting period started in February 2020 and finished in October 2022.
“The film is based on a virtual dialogue between Snescha, now 70 years old, living in Austria, and Franz, who will be ‘speaking’ through his immense archive of Super 8mm film, as well as photos and texts. However, in the centre of the story is Snescha, a woman who was in the shadow of her beloved man and who, after his tragic death, managed to raise three young kids, keep the family together, become an art teacher and build an artistic career in a foreign country“, Svetoslav Draganov also said.
The project was part of the Docu Talents from the East (2021) and MakeCoProDox Forum (2023).
The postproduction will be completed in March 2024. At this point, the producer is looking for postproduction partners for colour corrections and sound design, as well as sales agents and broadcasters.
Production Information:
Producer:
Cineaste Maudit Productions (Bulgaria)
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Coproducer:
Contrast Films (Bulgaria)
Credits:
Director: Svetoslav Draganov
Screenwriter: Svetoslav Draganov
DoP: Vesselin Hristov
Editor: Svetoslav Draganov
Sound: Svetoslav Draganov, Atanas Tcholakov
