The Resilience of Bulgarian Cinema and Its Global Stars

By the ULTIMATE Sofia Editorial Team

Boyana and the classic years (to 1989)

Bulgarian film found its voice after the war, and in 1962 the state opened its film studio at Boyana, at the foot of Mount Vitosha. Rangel Vulchanov’s poetic On the Small Island (1958) announced a new generation, and in 1972 Metodi Andonov’s The Goat Horn, a dark revenge tale drawn from a folk legend, became the film many Bulgarians still call the greatest they have made.

Bulgaria also had a fine school of animation, and its popular comedies and village dramas are still loved on television today.

The new generation (1990–present)

After 1990 the studios were privatised as Nu Boyana and became a base for international productions, while Bulgarian directors began to win on the festival circuit. Ralitza Petrova’s Godless won the Golden Leopard at Locarno in 2016, and Konstantin Bojanov’s Shameless brought Anasuya Sengupta the best actress award in Un Certain Regard at Cannes in 2024.

Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov’s sharp, humane dramas, The Lesson and Glory, have also found audiences across Europe.

Must-watch films

To understand Bulgarian cinema, start with these.

• On the Small Island (Na malkia ostrov, 1958): Rangel Vulchanov’s poetic drama of prisoners on an island in the 1920s.
• The Goat Horn (Koziyat rog, 1972): Metodi Andonov’s fierce revenge tale, the classic of Bulgarian cinema.
• The Lesson (Urok, 2014) and Glory (Slava, 2016): Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov’s moral dramas of everyday life.
• Godless (Bezbog, 2016): Ralitza Petrova’s bleak, striking drama, winner of the Golden Leopard at Locarno.

Where to watch in Sofia

In Sofia, the House of Cinema, the Odeon and the Lumière show Bulgarian and world cinema, and every March the Sofia International Film Festival, held since 1997, fills the city’s screens; Kinomania brings the year’s best films every autumn.

Our advice: look for Bulgarian films with English subtitles during the Sofia festival, when the city’s cinemas are at their liveliest.

House of Cinema →   Odeon →   Lumière →   Sofia International Film Festival →   Kinomania →

Hidden on the silver screen: international productions filmed in Bulgaria

Nu Boyana Film Studios, on the edge of Sofia, have become a base for Hollywood action and fantasy, with permanent backlots that can play ancient Rome, New York or a medieval town.

• The Expendables 2 (2012): Sylvester Stallone’s ensemble action film was made at Nu Boyana and around Bulgaria.
• 300: Rise of an Empire (2014): the sequel to 300 was filmed on the studio’s stages.
• Hellboy (2019): the reboot of the comic-book hero was filmed in Bulgaria, with Nu Boyana as its base.

Bulgarians on world screens

Bulgarian actors have found success far from Sofia.

• Maria Bakalova: born in Burgas, she was nominated for the Oscar for her role in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm and has since starred in Hollywood productions.
• Nina Dobrev: born in Sofia, the star of the television series The Vampire Diaries.

Questions and answers