Bulgarian 'The Island' Hits Movie Theaters in France
"The Island", young Bulgarian director Kamen Kalev's famous movie, which premiered last year at the Cannes Film Festival, is being screened in movie theatres across France.
According to the Bulgarian hit director, the French top model and actress Laetitia Casta has chosen to participate in his second project because of his first movie "Eastern Plays" and because of the director himself. Photo by BGNES
The Bulgarian director Kamen Kalev has stated that it is a dream come true to make a film with French top model and actress Laetitia Casta.
“Until four year ago, the idea of making a movie with Laetitia Casta in Burgas sounded absurd, like an impossible dream. But she is here since last night,” Kalev said Monday.
The Bulgarian director and his crew will stay for four weeks on St. Anastasia Island, formerly called Boshevik Island, near the city of Burgas, where they will film Kalev's second movie with a working title “The Island”.
Kalev, whose first feature film “Eastern Plays” became an international hit, has stated that he has been watching closely the career of the French actress.
“She is a great professional and she accepted to participate because of my first movie and because of me,” he said.
The director also said that it was normal for him to be worried because of the big expectations for his second project.
“After the first show of “Eastern Plays” in Cannes, one man came out and told me “Now the difficulties begin”. I hope we will stay adequate towards the story and we will manage to work without worries,” he said.
The popular Danish actor Thure Lindhardt has been chosen for the main male part in “The Island” after a long search. He will play Casta's beloved man.
The Bulgarian actors Boyka Velkova, Rusi Chanev and Lyuben Dilov Jr will also be part of Kalev's second movie.
The director has explained that the terrain of the film shooting was not chosen randomly.
“The former Bolshevik Island was my favorite place in my early years,” said Kalev, who was born in Burgas.
The movie is expected to be finished in April 2011.
Five centuries is a long time to wait. That is how long Bulgaria spent under Ottoman rule - from the late 14th century until the morning of March 3, 1878, when a peace treaty signed in a small village outside Constantinople gave the Bulgarian state back t
Every year on the 1st of March, Bulgaria bursts into a sea of red and white as the nation celebrates one of its most cherished and uniquely Bulgarian traditions - Baba Marta Day.
The first Saturday of Great Lent in Bulgaria is devoted to Saint Theodore Tiron, whose memory the Church also honors on February 17.
Rene Karabash’s novel She Who Remains has been selected for the longlist of the International Booker Prize, according to information published on the award’s official website and cited by BTA.
This year marks 153 years since the Apostle of Freedom was executed near Sofia.
The traditional Bulgarian salad "Snezhanka" has claimed the top spot in TasteAtlas’ ranking of the “50 Best-Rated Dishes with Cucumber”
Novinite 2025 in Review: A Year That Tested Bulgaria and the World
A Disgraceful Betrayal: Bulgaria's Shameful Entry into Trump's Board of Peace