“Tarika” has been officially chosen as Bulgaria’s submission for the “International Feature Film” category at the Oscars, the National Film Center (NFC) confirmed, BTA reports. A five-member committee selected Milko Lazarov’s third feature film to represent the country at the American Film Academy Awards.

The film had its world premiere at the 68th edition of the BFI London Film Festival, one of the most prestigious global festivals. Following multiple screenings internationally and in Bulgaria, it won two awards at the Calcutta Film Festival in India: Best Film and the FIPRESCI prize, the NFC highlighted.

“Tarika” tells a story of the eternal struggle between good and evil through Tarika, a young girl with extraordinary abilities living in a border village where different ethnic communities coexist. When domestic animals begin to die mysteriously, local superstitions turn against her, and the villagers seek to kill her.

The film stars Vessela Valcheva, Zahari Baharov, Ivan Savov, Ivan Burnev, Valeria Varbanova, and Christos Stergioglu. The screenplay was written by Ekaterina Churilova, Simeon Ventsislavov, and Milko Lazarov, while cinematography was handled by Kaloyan Bozhilov. Ivaylo Petrov designed the sets, Kiril Naumov oversaw costumes, and Penka Kuneva composed the music.

Produced by Veselka Kiryakova of Red Carpet in collaboration with ZDF/ARTE, 42film (Germany), and Amour Fou (Luxembourg), the project received funding from the NBC, Eurimages, Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung, Film Fund Luxembourg, and Creative Europe Media. The film’s world distribution is managed by Films Boutique, and in Bulgaria, it is represented by Purple Rain.