Sofia Film Fest Marks 25th Anniversary, Jubilee Edition Launched Despite Pandemic

A quarter of a century after the beginning set by Music Film Fest in 1997, the international film festival Sofia Film Fest is preparing to mark its 25th anniversary. Launched as a thematic festival of cinema and music, which has undergone further development over the years, Sofia Film Fest (SFF) has become one of the most significant film events in Central and Eastern Europe, the only Bulgarian film festival with FIAPF accreditation, included in the list of the 50 most important film industry festivals in the world and entered in the calendar of FIPRESCI.

The SFF has been visited by a host of global filmmakers, including Vim Wenders, Alan Parker, Nikita Mihalkov, Volker Šlöndorff, Anyes Varda, Jiri Menzel, Costa-Gavras, Terry Gillum, Emir Kusturica, Otar Joseliani, Bille August, Goran Paskalevic, Bela Tarr, Krzysztof Zaniussi, Agnieszka Holland, Hugh Hudson, Claudia Cardinale, Rupert Everett, Franco Nero, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, Nuri Bilge Jaylan, Jerry Schatzberg, Danis Tanovic, Pavel Pavlikowski, Ildiko Eneydi, Abel Ferrara and many, many others. Most of them are winners of Sofia's Award of Sofia Municipality.

Because of the Covid-19pandemic, the 25th edition of Sofia Film Fest will take place in two parts. The main festival will be held on its traditional dates in March, when the selected films will be shown simultaneously online (in partnership with the world's leading platform for organizing online festivals Festival Scope/Shift 72) and in cinema theaters in compliance with all anti-epidemic measures, and foreign guests will be an exception.

The focus of the SFF first part will be the official selection, the presentation of the new Bulgarian feature and documentary films, latests films of established directors and young talents, festival favorites in the last year, and films from special jubilee rubrics.

Later in the year, expect a special edition of the 25th festival, focused on the films presented by their authors from all over the world. We hope this edition will take us back to the time when Sofia Film Fest was called the "Party of the Year!".

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