SILENT OBSERVERS
Details
2024 BG DE I Docu-fiction I 96’ I Bulgarian
Quotes
“Eliza Petkova has always stunned festival viewers with her idiosyncratic way of rendering the everyday poetic” - Cineuropa
"Wonderful. Meditative. A film that changes how you look at life and your surroundings. Isn't that what great art is supposed to do?” - More Reviews on Letterboxd
Synopsis
In a remote Bulgarian mountain village, six animals reveal the mysterious world of superstition. A cat is considered a vampire, a donkey is thought to be bewitched, and a dog is seen as a chicken hunter. Through sensitive observation, we witness the dwindling hopes of the village through the eyes of its four-legged inhabitants. Time seems to stand still, yet transience remains the only constant.
Awards
“a haunting and unforgettable experience for the audience” - Special Mention @ Sofia International Film Festival
Best Documentary @ DOK.Fest Münich
3 Awards out of 5 nominations @National Film Festival “Vasil Gendov”, Union of Bulgarian Filmmakers Awards: Best Directing, Best Documentary, Best Music
Artistic Vision Award @ DOCAVIV
Special Jury Prize for Ethnographic Representation @ OKO International Ethnographic film Festival
Festivals
IDFA (NL), CPH:DOX (DK), Docaviv (IL), SXSW London (UK), Against Gravity (PL), Tempo IFF (Sweden), Sydney IFF (AU), Thessaloniki (GR), Beldocs (Serbia), DOXA (CA), Sofia IFF (BU), Burgas International Film Festival (BG), DOK.München (DE), Golden Linden International Film Festival (BG), Heimat Europa Film Festival (DE), MAKEDOX (MK), festival della Lessina (IT), FIDBA (AR)
Credits
Directed by Eliza Petkova
Produced by Veselka Kiryakova, Red Carpet Ltd. (Bulgaria);
Co-produced by Jasper Mielke, Wood Water Films (Germany);
In collaboration with RBB
Director’s Bio
In 2016, Eliza Petkova completed her first feature film, ZHALEIKA, which premiered at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival where it was nominated for Best First Feature and was awarded a Special Mention by the international jury of the Generation Section. This was followed by various other festival screenings, as well as international prizes and awards. Eliza was invited to participate in the Berlinale Talents at the 68th Berlin International Film Festival in 2018. In 2020 her second feature film, A FISH SWIMMING UPSIDE DOWN, premiered at the 70th edition of Berlinale. in the same year she was awarded the Wim Wenders Grant. In 2021 she received the Kompagnon-Fellowship Award at the 71st edition of Berlinale and was awarded Best Director at the Tirana International Film Festival. Her documentary MAYOR, SHEPHERD, WIDOW, DRAGON premiered at the Shanghai International Film Festival and celebrated its German premiere at the 43rd edition of the Film Festival Max Ophüls Prize, where it received the Critic's Award.
Filmography
2021 MAYOR, SHEPHERD, WIDOW, DRAGON (Germany / Bulgaria, documentary) 97 min.
2020 A FISH SWIMMING UPSIDE DOWN (Germany / China, fiction), 103 min.
2018 DIE ANDEREN (Germany, short), I I min.
2016 ZHALEIKA (Germany / Bulgaria, fiction), 92 min.
