Bulgarian Film Resources
The Bulgarian Cinema by ISBN: 9780838631836Date: 1986-02-01This survey of Bulgarian cinema from its beginning to its present situation under the current government reveals this country's vital and original filmmakers at work expressing and continuing their nation's rich artistic and cultural heritage.
The Cinema of Small Nations by ISBN: 9780253220103Date: 2008-01-21The Cinema of Small Nations is the first major analysis of small national cinemas, comprising 12 case studies of small national--and sub national--cinemas from around the world, including Ireland, Denmark, Iceland, Scotland, Bulgaria, Tunisia, Burkina Faso, Cuba, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and New Zealand. Written by an array of distinguished and emerging scholars, the case studies provide detailed analyses of the particular cinema in question, with an emphasis on the last decade, considering both institutional and textual issues relevant to the national dimension of each cinema.
The Conformists: Creativity and Decadence in the Bulgarian Cinema 1945-89 by ISBN: 9781443829700Date: 2011-07-01The complexities and paradoxes of the Bulgarian film industry during the era of Communist rule (1945-1989) are explored in The Conformists: Creativity and Decadence in the Bulgarian Cinema 1945-89. This influential industry was mobilized for the needs of the state. During its creation and development, cultural institutions and those involved in film production operated within a relatively closed system, based on rewards and punishments imposed by the Communist bureaucratic apparatus. Sub-textual content in films produced in Bulgaria during this period highlights the attitude of the elite towards the regime.
"Contemporary Bulgarian Cinema: From Allegorical Expressionism to Declined National Cinema" in East, West and Centre: Reframing Post-1989 European Cinema by ISBN: 9780748694150Date: 2014-12-09In East West and Centre the world's leading scholars in the field assemble to consider the ways in which notions such as East and West, national and transnational, central and marginal are being rethought and reframed in contemporary European cinema. Assessing the state of post-1989 European cinema, from (co)production and reception trends to filmic depictions of migration patterns, economic transformations and socio-political debates over the past and the present, they address increasingly intertwined cinema industries that are both central (France and Germany) and marginal in Europe (Romania, Bulgaria, Lithuania).
Cinema of Flames: Balkan Film, Culture and the Media by ISBN: 0851708471Date: 2001-08-26Cinema of Flames attempts to go deeper than the imagery and address some of the general concerns of the cross-cultural representation and self-representation of the Balkans: narrative strategies within the context of Balkan exclusion from the European cultural sphere, the cosmopolitan image of Sarejevo, diaspora, and the representations of villains, victims, women, and ethnic minorities, all considered in the general context of Balkan cinema. 'encyclopaedic in scope and brilliance, making excellent use of the scholarly literature whilst interweaving analysis of films and other mass media.- Balkan Cinema: Evolution after the Revolution byISBN: 0835712907Date: 1982-01-01Revision of thesis (Ph.D.)--George Washington University, 1978
"Bulgarian Cinema: Optimism in Moderation" in Cinemas in Transition in Central and Eastern Europe After 1989 by ISBN: 1592132650Date: 2013-01-11The end of state Socialism brought about a range of changes that affected every segment of society; cinema was no exception. Although space prevents full attention to those important changes in the industrial setup for cinematic production here, the author outlines the main ways in which they believe Bulgarian cinema suffered and gained during the post-Socialist era.
- "Discourses of inclusion and exclusion in new Bulgarian cinema: between Balkanness and Europeanness" / by Antonina Anisimovich
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Studies in Eastern European cinema, 2020, Vol.12 (1), p.36-50
After Bulgaria's accession to the EU, the national film industry is undergoing a process of a certain revival invigorated by the increased number of European coproductions, allowing for the East/West contestation to manifest itself more clearly on screen. Incorporating the results of textual film analysis, interviews with the filmmakers, and the focus group discussions with Bulgarian audiences of various age groups, this paper analyses the representations of national identity and the interplay between the representations of Europeanness and Balkanness. - "Coming to terms with the past : new Bulgarian cinema and the post-communist transition" / by Antanina AnisimovichDissertation--Edge Hill University, 2019
In 1989, Bulgaria started its long and complicated process of a post-communist transition. The subsequent economic, social, and political instability, accompanied by a delayed and limited process of decommunization, shaped a fragmented and polarized narrative about the past. Post-communist transition remains an important theme in the new Bulgarian cinema, manifesting the need to discuss and evaluate the legacies of the past. This thesis proposes a multi-method approach to media memory studies, combining textual and contextual film analysis, focus groups with the audience, and interviews with the filmmakers. - "The Refugees and Contemporary Bulgarian Cinema – Representational Problems and Models" / by Andronika Martonova
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Balkanistic forum, 2021, Vol.30 (2), p.138-149
Recently several mature and young directors summoned the courage to discuss the image of the refugee, sending various messages to the audience (local and international). With the aid of the film studies toolbox – but within the contexts of the socio-cultural environment the author has analyzed the documentaries Long Live Bulgaria (2017, by Adela Peeva) and The Good Postman (2016, by Tonislav Hristov); the shorts - Trials (2017, by Boya Harizanova) and Dobry (2017, by Orlin Milchev); and the feature film Fear (2020, by Ivaylo Hristov).
- "Making waves: meet the director whose heartbreaking vision of modern Bulgaria is stunning critics" / by Yohana PavlovaCalvert Journal, 2016.
In her latest film — Godless — Bulgarian film director Ralitza Petrova tells the story of a scam selling the identities of the poor. The director talks to The Calvert Journal about her new film and what it says about state of her country today
- Stars (dir. Konrad Wolf, 1959)
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- I Dream of Mummers (dir. Adela Peeva, 2011)
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- The Optimists (dir. Jacky Comforty, 2011)
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- The Lesson (dir. Kristina Grozeva & Petar Valchanov, 2014)
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- Fear / Strah (dir. Ivaylo Hristov, 2020)
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Additional Resources on Selected Major Films from Bulgaria
- REVIEW: Milko Lazarov’s 'Ága’ a brilliant juxtaposition of traditional, modern life
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- Review: ‘The Lesson’ Is a Test of Conscience and Patience
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- Bulgarian Chronicle Bulgarian newsreel showing contemporary activities and events that were happening in 1964
- FIAF International Index to Film Periodicals This link opens in a new window Searches film and television articles in the International Index to Film Periodicals (1972-current) and Treasures from the Film Archives, which contains silent film-era listings from archives.
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- Performing Arts Periodicals Database This link opens in a new window Articles and reviews from a broad spectrum of the arts and entertainment industry - including dance, drama, theater, stagecraft, circus, opera, pantomime, puppetry, magic, performance art, film, television, and more. Former database title: International Index to Performing Arts (IIPA) Full Text.
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- "Razprostranenie na filmi," DP (Bulgaria) 1960 - 1992
- "Spisanie Kino/Kino Magazine and its role in reflecting and developing Bulgarian film culture" / by Maya Nedyalkova Studies in Eastern European cinema, 2018, Vol.9 (1), p.112-114
- FIAF International Index to Film Periodicals This link opens in a new window Searches film and television articles in the International Index to Film Periodicals (1972-current) and Treasures from the Film Archives, which contains silent film-era listings from archives.
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- Performing Arts Periodicals Database This link opens in a new window Articles and reviews from a broad spectrum of the arts and entertainment industry - including dance, drama, theater, stagecraft, circus, opera, pantomime, puppetry, magic, performance art, film, television, and more. Former database title: International Index to Performing Arts (IIPA) Full Text.
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- Oxford Bibliographies Online: Cinema and Media Studies This link opens in a new window Annotated bibliographies for topics in the field of Cinema and Media Studies. Combines encyclopedia-style introductions with expert recommendations of the most important reference works, books, journals, and primary sources on the topic.
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- Central and Eastern European Online Library (CEEOL) This link opens in a new window Archive of scholarly and cultural publications from Central and Eastern Europe.
- American Bibliography of Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ABSEEES) This link opens in a new window Covers North American and some European scholarship since the late 1980s on East-Central Europe, Russia, the former Soviet Union and former Soviet republics. Indexes journal articles, books, book chapters, book reviews, dissertations, and selected government publications.
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- JSTOR This link opens in a new window Full text of core scholarly journals from their beginning to approximately five years ago. Disciplines include botany, business, ecology, general science, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, statistics. Browsable by discipline and full-text searchable across all disciplines. UCLA has access to selected JSTOR e-books.
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- Project MUSE This link opens in a new window Full text of current issues (from about 1990) of scholarly journals published by university presses, chiefly in the arts, humanities and social sciences. Browsable by discipline and full-text searchable across all disciplines. UCLA has access to Muse e-books published from 2017-present, plus a selected number of other e-book titles.
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- Bulgarian National Film Archive A large part of the film collection can be seen on the screen of the Odeon cinema. The film archive is currently located in several cities: Sofia, Stara Zagora and Belogradchik.
- Bulgarian National Film Center The official website for the Bulgarian National Film Center–a governmental organization for promoting and funding Bulgarian film production
- Bulgarian Visual Resources at the Library of Congress (2010) The collection of Bulgarian materials is one of largest outside of Bulgaria with over forty-five thousand volumes, including extensive holdings of newspapers and journals.
- Spisanie Kino/Kino Magazine The KINO (Cinema) magazine is a unique bimonthly issue for film culture and film theory in Bulgaria. The KINO (Cinema) magazine is established in 1946 under the name “KINO and PHOTO” (Cinema and Photo) as a printed organ of the state owned Foundation ‘Bulgarian Deed'. Since 1952 to 1955 it is named “KINO” magazine. Since 1955 to 1991 it is renamed to “KINOIZKUSTVO” (Cinema art). Since 1991 is recovered its current name “Kino”.
- Women Film Directors in the Bulgarian Cinema Project Specialized website to present Woman Film Directors in Bulgarian cinema to the audiences. Features bios, filmographies, interviews, video clips.
Selected Bulgarian Films
I Dream of Mummers (dir. Adela Peeva, 2011)
"I Dream of Mummers is a story about a custom, called kukeri, in which masked people dance at the end of Winter and the beginning of Spring."
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The Optimists (dir. Jacky Comforty, 2011)
"THE OPTIMISTS tells the dramatic story of Christians and Muslims who, at the eleventh hour, secured the safety of their Jewish neighbors."
UCLA students, staff, and faculty access through Kanopy. Log into the campus VPN or proxy server to view video.
The Lesson (dir. Kristina Grozeva & Petar Valchanov, 2014)
"In a small Bulgarian town, Nade is an honest, hard-working elementary school teacher and devoted mother, struggling to keep her life together."
UCLA students, staff, and faculty access through Kanopy. Log into the campus VPN or proxy server to view video.
Fear / Strah (dir. Ivaylo Hristov, 2020)
"Svetla, a strong-willed widow, lives alone in a small Bulgarian village close to the Turkish border. She has recently lost her job as a teacher due to the lack of families with young children. One day, while hunting in a forest, she encounters an African refugee, Bamba, who is trying to reach Germany, and will bring about a dramatic turn in her life. Reluctantly, she offers him hospitality, but day after day, a bond develops as Bamba learns the language and takes part in her daily life."
Bulgaria's official submission to the 2022 Academy Awards.