Photo exhibition on Bulgarian film centenary opens in parliamentary building

A photo exhibition dedicated to the century anniversary of Bulgarian filmmaking opened in the building of the country's parliament on Wednesday.

It consists of 100 photographs featuring moments from the filming of 100 Bulgarian movies from the early 20th century onwards, starting from the pioneer -- Vasil Gendov's "The Bulgarian Is Gallant," which was screened to the public on Jan. 13, 1915.

Hundreds of visitors had also the opportunity to see popular faces from films admired by generations of Bulgarians, such as At Every Milestone, The Goat Horn, Doomed Souls, All Is Love, and The Double.

Tsetska Tsacheva, President of Bulgaria's National Assembly, said at the opening ceremony that Bulgarian cinema has something to be proud of, and talented filmmakers had a major contribution to this.

According to Vezhdi Rashidov, Minister of Culture, this anniversary is a reason to go back in time, remember again the richness of the Bulgarian cinema and national creators, and meet young talents.

Stefan Danailov, one of the most famous Bulgarian actors, who is currently also a member of the parliament, said that until 1999, Bulgaria produced up to 32 Bulgarian feature films a year, while today the country managed to complete six to eight films a year.

Meanwhile, the country had over 3,000 cinemas during the 1980s, while today the number was less than 40, Danailov said.

However, he was proud that Bulgarian contemporary movies received awards at prestigious major festivals abroad, and more and more often were nominated for Oscars in the special selection of foreign language films, Danailov said.

Besides this exhibition, various events are to be held throughout 2015 to celebrate the 100 Years of Bulgarian Cinema, such as film screenings, releasing a silver commemorative coin, and validating a new commemorative stamp. Endit