Gardev spent 18 months on development and presentations at European workshops, including the Cannes L'Atelier (www.festival-cannes.com/fr/cinefoundation) networking program. The film most probably will be directed by DoP Emil Christov, who shot Zift.

The €1.3 million film, supported by the Bulgarian National Film Center (www.nfc.bg), was scheduled to shoot in the summer of 2010. Due to the drastic financial cuts, the NFC was able to supply only 50% of its grant commitment.

"There were some promises that the other 50% could be added in 2011, but they were rather vague," Gardev told FNE. "In the meantime I had become firmly engaged with another film in Russia, so it became impossible for me to shoot Zinkograf in 2011."

For scriptwriter Todorov, who also represents the production company Peripeteia (www.peripeteiafilms.com), "The cancellation of the shooting was a painful decision." In order to preserve the creative integrity of the crew, the decision was made for Gardev to be replaced by Emil Christov, who Todorov praised as "an artist with conceptual style!"

Gardev said, "Maybe I missed the best moment in my career. I wish my colleagues and friends all the dedication, patience and perseverance that I probably did not pursue enough."

The new NFC director Irina Kanusheva confirmed that after the completion of the required legal process over the transfer of rights, the institution will sign an agreement with Peripeteia designating Christov as first time director.