For the first time, three Bulgarian feature films will compete for the Grand Prize “Sofia – City of Film” in the International Competition for First and Second Films at the Sofia International Film Festival.
Windless by Pavel Vesnakov is described by Variety as “a highly emotional portrait of an unwilling yet redemptive homecoming.” This film, a co-production of Bulgaria and Italy, was presented at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival.
Windless also won the Special Award of the international jury at the CinEast Festival in Luxembourg. It is Pavel Vesnakov’s second feature film after German Lessons, which established his reputation through his work on television series such as Stolen Life (2016–2021), The Devil’s Throat, and Father’s Day (2019).
Windless tells the story of a young man who returns to Bulgaria to sell his deceased father’s apartment. What appears at first to be a routine task turns into a journey back in time, through which he must overcome past traumas. The lead role is played by the rap artist Ognyan Pavlov, known as FYRE.
“I am fascinated by the topic of forgiveness and what we do when we are irretrievably late in seeking it,” explains Vesnakov. The cinematographer for Windless is Orlin Ruevski, and the producer is Veselka Kiryakova.
The feature film debut Flesh by screenwriter and director Dimitar Stoyanovich tells the painful story of Nadezhda, who, while translating the novel Flesh by the fictional Nobel Prize laureate Yukio Kobayashi, discovers that she has a tumor in her head.
“For years I witnessed the tragedy of my mother being diagnosed with cancer. At that time, I did not realize what was to come. We reassured each other with broad smiles that we could overcome the illness and that our spirit would triumph over the flesh. It turned out not to be so. The spirit—or the soul—remained strong until the end, but not the flesh. The flesh cannot be deceived. Since I have been in love with Japan since childhood, I developed the image of the imaginary writer Yukio Kobayashi, who helped me introduce a purely philosophical concept of flesh as the fundamental factor of human existence. "Flesh" is a personal story, written in about 20 days during the summer of 2020,” says Stoyanovich to FNE.
Regarding casting, the director shares: “As the son of an actress, I believe in actors—their discipline, emotional intelligence, and ability to grasp the psychology of what is happening. The script was written with professional actors in mind, and I had a clear idea of who they should be. Plamena Getova, who plays Nadezhda, is an exceptionally profound actress and a strong woman. For the role of her daughter, I chose Vesela Babinova, a talented representative of the younger generation whom I had in mind while writing the script.”
Other actors appearing in the film include Julian Vergov, Dilyana Popova, Rashko Mladenov, Rushen Vidinliev, Nazim Karakurt, Stefan Mavrodiyev, and Nikolaos Tsitiridis. The cinematographer is Rali Ralchev, and the music for Flesh is composed by Zhivko Petrov.
Magdelena Ilieva’s feature film debut Eternity Package is a black comedy about a funeral director in a Bulgarian town where old feuds never die but are passed down through generations. “There was no doubt that we would shoot in Blagoevgrad – this is where I was born and raised,” shares the director. Inspired by her father’s ordeals in the “new capitalism,” her film follows a funeral director on the edge: his business is failing, his wife leaves him, and creditors are closing in. Desperate to save his livelihood and his soul, he begins teaching dance classes in a nursing home to attract clients for his prepaid funeral services.
“I found hope in my mother’s friends in Blagoevgrad – pensioners who danced for hours on set, forgetting life’s hardships,” says Ilieva. “Their joy permeates the spirit of the film. My father’s dreams, once trampled by corruption, form the emotional core of the film. By weaving black comedy with a heartfelt confession, I challenge all of us to imagine a future unburdened by the past – a victory of empathy and humanity over cynicism.”
The film provokes reflection beyond the confines of small-town reality: What does it take to forgive in our imperfect world? Is redemption possible in a place where history casts a heavy shadow and the dividing lines seem insurmountable? The lead roles are played by Stoyan Doychev, Mariana Krumova, Kitodar Todorov, and Aleksandra Sarchadjieva. The cinematographer is Debora Vrizzi, music is by Simone Civitillo, and co-screenwriter is Jonathan Heidelberger. Producer Martichka Bozhilova appears in a cameo role. The world premiere was held as part of the “Spectrum” program at the 34th Film Festival in Kotbus.
All three films were made with the support of the Bulgarian National Film Center.
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