Georgi and the Butterflies

Colour, 35 mm
Bulgaria, 2004, 60 min
Section: Documentary Films in Competition
Oficiální stránky: www.georgiandthebutterflies.com

Synopsis

The film is a group portrait of the director of a crumbling psychiatric hospital, its wards and staff. Psychiatrist and neurologist Georgi Lulchev is presented as a great idealist and dreamer. For therapeutic and practical reasons, he wants to involve his patients in business enterprises. Thus he assiduously travels round all kinds of different farms and factories. He considers breeding coypus and silkworms, ostriches and snails, and baking bread. He tirelessly searches for sponsors; he understands accounting and methodically fills out his betting tickets. For his aim is to turn the old monastery-hospital into a dignified and modern home for his wards. He sees them as his family and he tries in any way he can to make their existence in involuntary isolation more humane. He involves them in sports and preparations for Christmas. His tolerant wife?s comments introduce a humorous tone to the film.

About the director

Andrey Paounov studied at the National Film and Theatre Academy in Sofia (2000). He made a number of short films, such as A Short Film about Yuri Gagarin (Kratki film za Yuri Gagarin, 1995), for which he won the Grand Prix at the Varna FF. He attracted the attention of critics and audiences with the super-short film Lucy Tsak Tsak (2000), where, in 67 slates, he incorporated the 30-year endeavours of the film’s clapperboard heroine. With his latest film Georgi and the Butterflies he won the Silver Wolf for Best Short Documentary at last year’s IDFA. He lives in San Francisco