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17-12-2009

Bulgarian grants announced

By Pavlina Jeleva
    The Bulgarian NFC selected its final round of films receiving funding in 2009, distributing a total of € 2.3 million.

    Due to recent major cuts in film funding, only two projects from the fourteen that applied received final approval: False Witness by writer/director Iglika Trifonova (Investigation) and Zincograph by writer Vladislav Todorov and director Javor Gardev (Zift).

    Trifonova's script was awarded at the 4th Crossroads co-production forum of the Thessaloniki IFF in 2008. Based on a true story and dealing with dramatic personal experiences from the post war period in Bosnia with the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague involved one of the most ambitious Bulgarian projects to date will be entirely shot outside of the country.

    Largely promoted as a political psycho-thriller and telling the story of an informant of the Bulgarian communist secrete police Zincograph is also an international award winner. In 2008 the Tessaloniki Balkan fund selected the project for a €10,000 grant, and in 2009 it won the Sarajevo Cinelink Restart award, offered by the Ljublijana post production company of the same name, worth €20,000 of in-kind services. Gardev, whose debut was the awarded black and white neo-noir Zift produced by Miramar, will produce with a new production company, Peripeteia.

    Two full length feature film debuts were selected for funding: The Woman of my Life by Ali Talib and Antonii Donchev and Three by writer/director Kiril Stankov. Two short directorial debuts were also chosen: Faith, Love and Whisky by writer/director Kristina Nikolova and Without a Title by writer Ivan Mosskov and director Igor Hristov. Only the development funding approved wide support: five of the fourteen films which applied will receive funding.