Produced by Activist38:
2019 – “Cat in the wall” – fiction film, dir. by Mina Mileva and Vesela Kazakova, co-production with Glasshead Limited UK, Ici et Là Productions (FR) -
Christophe Bruncher, Bulgarian National Television
2017 – “Margarit and the Monster” – 9 minutes animation, dir. by Nayden Nikolov, supported by the National Film Centre, Bulgaria
2016 “The Beast is still alive” – 90 min documentary, dir. by Mina Mileva and Vesela Kazakova
2014 “Uncle Tony, Three Fools and the Secret Service” – 86 min documentary, dir. by Mina Mileva and Vesela Kazakova
2013 “Because of Mum” – 12 min animation, dir. by Antoaneta Chetrafilova
2010 “Where is your head” - 7 min short fiction, dir. By Nenko Genov
2008 “Just so Darwin” - three episodes from the animated series for BBC 2 with Glasshead limited, London
2008 “Because of her” – 58 min documentary, dir. by Bilyana and Vesela Kazakova
In Production:
• “Sisters” – feature fiction film, dir. by Mina Mileva and Vesela Kazakova, supported by the Bulgarian National Film Centre
Awards&Nominations:
• 2017 “Cat in the wall” (in post-production)
ARTE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS CINELINK AWARD – Sarajevo IFF
POST PITCH AWARD by Post Republic – Connecting Cottbus
• 2015, 2016, 2017 “The Beast is still alive”
IDFA FORUM AWARD 2015 at East Doc Platform Pitch, Prague
BEST DOCUMENTARY of the month at Calcutta Cult Film Festival 2017
BEST DOCUMENTARY at Aegean Docs 2017
BEST ANIMATION Gold Award and BEST DIRECTOR - Bronze Award at the European Independent Film Awards 2018
BEST DOCUMENTARY at European Cinematography Awards 2018
GOLDEN PALM AWARD at Mexico International Film Festival 2018
• 2014, 2015 “Uncle Tony, Three Fools and the Secret Service”
Best Director at Berlin International Film Festival
Royal Reel Award from Canada International Film Festival
Bronze Palm from Mexico International Film Festival
Women D/P Finalist Documentary at Florida Movie Festival
Award of Merit: Documentary Feature from the Accolade Global Film Competition;
First place in "Art" category at the International Heritage Film Festival "Idols";
Honorable Mention at Trindie Fest Film Festival, Colorado, United States;
Best Feature Documentary at 8th Bushwick Film Festival, New York;
Best Documentary at Phoenix Film Festival, Melbourne;
Country Best Award from International Open Film Festival;
Best Feature Film at Arquivo em Cartaz – Rio de Janeiro;
3 nominations at the Bulgarian Film Academy Awards: Best Film, Best Director, Best Sound
• 2013, 2014, 2015 “Because of Mum”
Special Jury Mention for good artistic solution at the 6th International Television Festival “Dytiatko”, Ukraine;
Best Film: Europe 3rd place - Anim!Arte Film Festival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil;
Special mention -Valle d'Itria Film Festival, Puglia, Italy;
Best Short Film and Best Animation at Phoenix Comicon festival, USA;
Best Debut and Best Director for Antoaneta Chetrafilova at the Bulgarian Academy Awards 2013;
Special mention - Athens Animfest 2015
• 2012, 2013 “Pancho and Alice”
Best project Award at Sofia Meetings;
MFI’12 - scholarship
EAVE’13 – scholarship
• 2010, 2011 “Where is your head”
Honourable Mention of the Jury at the 17th International Festival of Local Televisions „Golden Beggar“, Košice, Slovakia;
Audience Award - 60 Seconds Short Film Festival in Copenhagen
Bulgarian company Activist38 is attracted to projects with strong political and social engagement as well as a hybrid forms and mix between the genres. Its producers are strongly present internationally; members of the EDN and alumni of Emerging Producers’13, Eave’13. Mina and Vesela’s authored documentary “THE BEAST IS STILL ALIVE” (2016), dealing with consequences of Communism stirred a national controversy. After one broadcast on the Bulgarian National Television the film set the social media on fire and it was removed from airtime. The Socialist Party (former Communists) made a legal investigation into why a “propaganda” movie is aired.
With festival selections at IDFA, Sarajevo, Warsaw, Goteborg, ZagrebDox and others and awards at Aegean docs, Calcutta film fest, Mexico IFF, European Independent awards the film gained international recognition. In October 2019 it is about to be aired on ARTE.
In 2014 Activist38’s first documentary “UNCLE TONY, THREE FOOLS, AND THE SECRET SERVICE” provoked a scandal in the film industry and is still banned from screenings in Bulgaria. While it portrays the story of late animator Antoni Trayanov it also displays the lack of political lustration and the influence of the former Communist Secret Service in current Bulgarian society. It received 11 international awards and it enjoyed successful domestic cinema release. It was reviewed by Variety and it took part in AFI’s selection “Best of European Cinema” in 2014. It was sold to Al Jazeera Balkans and is VoD released on Amazon, iTunes, Apple TV, etc.
CE’s MEDIA and Ile de France supported fiction film project “CAT IN THE WALL”, a co-production between Bulgaria, UK and France, deals with East European migrants in London. The project received ARTE CineLink Award and Post-production services from the Post Republic, Germany after winning a pitch in Cottbus in 2017. The fiction project “WOMEN DO CRY“ has acquired a low budget national support and is currently in production.
activist 38