Тhe script penned by Krumov himself follows Zdravko, who dreams of escaping farm life and becoming a famous influencer. Leaving his desperate father behind, he seeks his cousin Monique, a TikTok star, believing she’ll be his ticket to popularity and money. But he finds quirky copycat Lucy instead. The two loners form an odd couple in a hostile city, chasing viral fame and spiraling into dangerous pranks, romance and love. Videos of his dangerous stunts go viral, and fame consumes Zdravko.
Тhe cast includes Zdravko Moskov, Vera Velinova, Jacklin Docheva and Nikola Dodov.
“Barefoot Bull can be described as a coming-of-age drama, but way more genre fluid, bittersweet and disturbing. It’s a contemporary plot, yet it deals with the everlasting themes of loneliness, desires, and human foolishness. I am influenced by the work of Francis Bacon and Robert Bresson and their ability to express the pain and angst of the human condition in a very raw way. The two main characters are exciting, being so young and vulnerable, and I feel an urgency to speak about this generation with its slang, fashion, habits, and most of all the mysterious connection to their phones. These kids are non-stop online socialising, yet they are so lonesome.” Petur Krumov told FNE.
Rossitsa Valkanova is producing through KLAS Film (Bulgaria) in coproduction with Kristian van der Heyde of Harald House (Belgium).
The project received production support from the Bulgarian National Film Center in 2023, and a Pre-sale from the Bulgarian National Television in 2024. It was also supported by Creative Europe MEDIA (Slate funding) in 2022 and the Belgian Tax Shelter Scheme in 2024/2025.
Barefoot Bull was presented at Sofia Meetings 2024, where it received the main award of 25,000 EUR in postproduction services, given by Cinelab (Romania).
The total budget is 730,000 EUR, and KLAS Film is currently seeking TV pre-sales and equity investments in the film production to fill a gap of 15% in the budget.
The 24 shooting days were divided between October 2024 and April 2025 at locations in Sofia and its surroundings.
The film was lensed by Georgi Georgiev, who also shot Petar Krumov’s short films Shame (nominated for the Best Short Film Award at the European Film Awards 2018), and Hunger (2021, selected for Clermont-Ferrand).
The final postproduction will be completed in October 2025.
The film will be distributed by No Blink Group in Bulgaria and Periscoop Film in Belgium. The first option on the film is granted to the sales company Heretic Outreach.
Production Information:
Producer:
KLAS Film (Bulgaria)
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Coproducer:
Harald House (Belgium)
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Credits:
Director: Petar Krumov
Scriptwriter: Petar Krumov
DoP: Georgi Georgiev
Editor: Raquel Ferreira
Set designer: Maria Paounova
Costume designer: Svetla Dionisieva
Composer: Justine Bourgeus
Cast: Zdravko Moskov, Vera Velinova, Jacklin Docheva, Nikola Dodov
