"Birthday" is the feature film that represented Bulgaria in Atlanta, Georgia, at the European Film Festival – at almost the same time when attention in Europe was focused on "Eurovision". It was then that a Bulgarian full-length film was shown for the first time within the framework of the European Film Festival in Atlanta – and that was precisely "Birthday" by director Ivaylo Penchev, based on the final screenplay by our unforgettable colleague Bozhan Petrov.
Maria Topalova from Atlanta is one of the main driving forces behind the book club at the Bulgarian-American Center in the city. In an interview for BNR and the show "Horizon until noon", she shared her impressions of the premiere and the audience's reactions.
"We had our small Bulgarian triumph here in Atlanta as well. The festival is non-competitive, but our screening officially, according to the festival organizers, was the most attended, which is also a small reason for joy and success," shared Topalova.
She emphasized that at the Bulgarian-American Cultural Center in Atlanta, they consider this participation a significant success: the initiative exceeded the usual scale and achieved something that, in her words, is usually only within the capabilities of organizations with a much longer history, larger budgets, and far more numerous teams.
According to her, the festival enjoys a reputation as "the Cannes Film Festival, only in Atlanta". It is organized at the same time and has the ambition to present the best of European cinema to the local public.
"It was very important for us that Bulgaria be represented at it. We managed to bring the work to a successful conclusion and give a Bulgarian film, "Birthday", the opportunity to be shown to cinema lovers in Atlanta," Maria Topalova further recounted.
In her words, the film achieved an impressive response among the viewers: "People didn't just come to see 'Birthday', but they laughed, cried, applauded, and commented. Bulgarians made up the majority of the audience, but there were also Americans, Irish, and Italians. This success is a collective effort."
The European Film Festival in Atlanta is being held for the fifth time, and this year nine countries are participating. Besides Bulgaria, Ireland, Belgium, Latvia, Ukraine, France, Italy, Germany, and Switzerland are presenting their films.
You can listen to the full interview of Irina Nedeva with Maria Topalova on the show "Horizon until noon" in the audio file provided by BNR.