Published: July 03, 2023| 09:00 AM

On Monday, all eyes watching the Crystal Globe Competition will turn eastward. The drama Blaga’s Lessons, which will be screened in the Grand Hall of the Thermal Hotel at 5:00 p.m., focuses on seniors as representatives of a vulnerable and often abused group. The story of a seventy-year-old former teacher, who is robbed of her money and her once steadfast moral principles by telephone scammers, is a critique of the difficult conditions in post-communist Bulgaria. 

Building on The World Is Big and Salvation Lurks Around the Corner, Judgement and Directions, the renowned director Stephan Komandarev sticks with the central theme of his work, which is even more enhanced in the present film by the riveting performance of Eli Skorcheva as Blaga.

At the same venue, Dancing on the Edge of a Volcano will start at 8:00 p.m. This vivid documentary examines the current state of Lebanon, whose people were robbed not only of their material security but also of any hope for a decent life by the shocking explosion in the Port of Beirut in 2020. Under the direction of Cyril Aris, the film crew gives an authentic account of a sick but beautiful Middle East country, while also sharing their trauma.

The analysis of a divided homeland is a central theme of Aris’ films – he previously introduced his documentary The Swing to KVIFF’s audience.