Monday August 14, 8 pm – 9.30 pm (Romanian time)

The International Portrait Film Festival (IPFF) presents short films from all over the globe. Its main goal  is to curate a program that explores what the ‘portrait’ in cinema can be – a philosophy, a phenomenon, a social cause. The films at the IPFF include a palette of genres and topics, ranging from documentary to fiction, from experimental works to animation and screendance. The festival’s 4th edition is planned for 9-19 November 2023 in four Bulgarian cities: Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna and Veliko Tarnovo.

For the first time in 2023, the concept and a number of films will be presented abroad at the Făgăraș Research Institute’s Summer School.

Part 1: Interview with an artist

Key questions: Is there more than one way to interview an artist? What are some ways to capture an artist’s work, ideas and mission through the medium of (documentary) film? What is the point of creating a cinematic ‘portrait of an artist’?

1) A Monologue in the Intermission (Peter Vulchev, Bulgaria, 25’)

“A Monologue in the Intermission” is a documentary movie, a portrait of the prima ballerina Vessa Tonova. The movie is filmed for six hours only, during the play “Swan Lake” in Sofia Opera and Ballet in 2014. During this short time, filled with adrenaline and stress, Vessa Tonova makes the most sincere confessions of her life. Everything is filmed in her dressing room, during the intermission and between the scenes she does not play in.

2) RUST (Rafal Malecki, Poland, 30’)

An intimate portrayal of an artist-welder. Mariola Wawrzusiak-Borcz roams post-industrial areas with her faithful dog in search of scrap metal, which she uses in her artwork. During the welding process she creates terrifying sculptures of animals, androids and children affected by war.

3) Guerrero. Head in hands. (Miguel Herrero, Spain, 19’)

Under the frescoes of the Royal Monastery of Santa Clara is written the name Teresa Díez. She is the artist of one of the few frescoes of the Spanish Gothic period signed by women. The creative impulse of the past and questions about the place of women artists in the history of art meet in the present through the work of Susana Guerrero, the protagonist of the portrait film “Guerrero. Head in hands.”

4) Riot in the Meadow (Thomas Harman, UK, 9’)

“Riot in the Meadow” is a poetic documentary about the life of artist Vicky Hawkins. “Riot in the Meadow” is the name of a poem and also the title Vicky borrowed for her latest art exhibition. It incorporates the vibrant colors she uses in her work, using “A riot of colour”. Vicky explains how the meaning of the poem encapsulates her philosophy of life, love and death.

FACILITATORS

Ana-Maria Sotirova is the founder and director of the International Portrait Film Festival. This is the passion project she has been developing for the past four years. Ana-Maria has also worked at two festivals based in her hometown of Varna: RADAR Festival: Beyond Music and Moving Body Festival. Her education includes BA Film from the University of Reading and MA Film Studies from the University of Amsterdam (UvA). Ana-Maria’s MA thesis was focused on the field of screendance and the possibilities of it being an autonomous language rooted in the symbiosis between the mediums film and dance. She continues to be intrigued by this sphere and writes articles on screendance works at the Moving Body platform. Ana-Maria has taken part in various courses on cultural management in Sofia (2022) and Vienna (2023), and an upcoming one with the Festival Academy in New York City in January 2024.

Georgi Georgiev, Ph.D.

Ioana Hașu-Georgiev M.A.

Departments: Făgăraș Summer School 2023, Educational Programs Department

Regions: Global, Europe, Central and Eastern Europe

Topics: Visual Anthropology, History, Heritage, European Union