Bansko Film Festival: “My Bansko”

The Bansko Film Festival takes place between 25th and 29th November and is the Ninth International Film Festival for mountains, extreme sports and adventures in Bulgaria. Take a look at film trailer above. More info at banskofilmfest.com.

Christophe, the German film maker contacted me to say he is in the final editing of “My Bansko” — a film he has made with Frank Nadler — and will be premiered at the festival. Frank needs no introduction to many, as probably the most renowned and respected original expatriate. Originally from Germany Frank came to Bansko some nine years ago, he relishes in the mountain traditions and culture of Bansko.

So to wet your appetite, here is the film brief with technical detail on content and production. I will obtain a clip for this site, after the festival. But, knowing Frank, I am sure it will be a fabulous promotion for Bansko. I look forward to a sensitive, and insightful, essay on the very unique charms this mountain town holds for me and so many others.

This is a non profit making entreprise, so lets hope the praise I am sure they both will receive, rewards them for the effort this film took to make

“My Bansko” – the movie
Created for: Film project “My Bansko”
Created by: Christoph Hampe, Frank Nadler

“My Bansko”:  Film Summary

A 40 minute film about the small town of Bansko in Bulgaria will be presented on the INTERNATIONAL MOUNTAIN FILM FESTIVAL IN BULGARIA BANSKO 2009. In different sections the city, the scenery, the people and the attractions will be presented. During the movie Frank Nadler from time to time issues classifying comments about the viewed scenes. The film is otherwise without comments, speaks exclusively with cinematic means and tells its story through the pictures and sound.

Objectives

The audience should be able to come emotionally close to the town of Bansko. Experience how people live and have lived there, what the locals believe in and what they rejoice at. Experience the stunning natural surroundings and the opportunities Bansko offers to a visitor, a traveler.

The film should not be a mere travel brochure, it should make Bansko palpable.
It grabs its audience and opens up a deep insight into the culture of the country. The movie is to make people and life there to be understood, giving a glimpse of the local people’s lives and offer more than a visit usually makes possible. It is supposed to contribute to a greater understanding between cultures in Europe. Bulgaria is a EU member, but when you once question, for example, people in Germany about Bulgaria, there are hardly any answers. The country, and thus Bansko, is situated in the middle of Europe, and yet so distant and strange.

We believe that a small example in particular – a film around the town of Bansko – can communicate the versatility, openness, and the history also of the country Bulgaria.

Solution

We shoot with a small team this winter and summer. This provides flexibility and proximity. We get up close to people and find places that are indeed seen in a travel brochure, but we do not simply mirror them, but will experience them in a special way through the subjective evaluation of Frank Nadler, the Bavarian in Bulgaria.

Planned and researched chapters of the film

Bansko – the Old Town
Sveta Troitsa – the landmark
Bansko – the marketplace as a meeting place
Bansko – Life & Tradition
Bansko – Sports and Leisure
Bansko – People with heart
Bansko – in the summer
Bansko – open-minded and international
Bansko – Old ways
Bansko – In the mountains

Status Quo

With an impressive landscape and rich culture Bansko attracts more and more tourists. A place where you can travel in summer and winter. Approximately 2 hours drive from Sofia.

Bansko was mentioned as early as in 1000, has long been an important trading post between the Orient and the Occident. Today the small, about 1000 meters above sea mountain resort Bansko is an insider tip for winter sports or for hikers and nature lovers in summer.

My Bansko is the subjective view of a Bavarian, who came 9 years ago to the small town of Bansko in Bulgaria and immediately fell in love with the village.
There followed years full of curiosity, curiosity for the people, traditions, way of life. He saw the changes of a flourishing resort. Some with a crying, many with a laughing eye. While most people coming to Bansko enjoy just the hype in the resort, he searched for the other side, for the originality. For what could still be found by anyone who might just be looking for it. Thus, a story strong with pictures of a modern, future-facing, small town emerges, of a place of great natural beauty, tradition and history. “My Bansko” is supposed to give a view of both sides of the mountain town, the famous ski resort.

Exposé

The Pirin Mountains. Unesco World Heritage Site. At the foot of the mountain Todorka lies Bansko. Here live about 10 thousand people. In the air, everywhere, the homey smell of chimney smoke.

Bansko is the chosen home of the native Bavarian Frank Nadler. 9 years ago he first came to this place. From the first moment, he was done in. Here he wanted to continue to live.

The emblem of Bansko is the Orthodox Church of St. Troitsa. Here Bansko seems to stand still. The church of 1835 shows paintings and wood carvings. Successfully defied the rule of the Turks and socialism. The most beautiful church in Bulgaria, as Frank Nadler says.

In just a few years, the town has catapulted itself into one of the top ski and hiking resorts in Eastern Europe. With one of the most modern ski lift systems one goes up on the more than 2700 meters high mountain Todorka. Even the top-class sport of the FIS makes station here. Frank Nadler does not ski anymore. He uses the mountains around Bansko in is way.

The naturally evolved and rich in traditions old town enchants. The time-honoured cobbled streets, so to speak, catapult you into another world, the houses are made of river stones and wooden beams.

The Fantastic

The picturesque countryside around Bansko is reachable by car in just a few minutes. Here you can forget the hustle and bustle of the booming ski resorts. Wrap yourself in tradition – experience Europe like a hundred years ago. In the hills of the hinterland on a Sunday suddenly people meet, a whole village. There is a Kurban and they laugh, eat and sing.

Bansko is the town with the highest density of taverns and pubs in Bulgaria.

Nothing for Frank Nadler. In the evenings he would rather sit with his Bulgarian friends at a simple wooden table, eating lavishly, drinking the “home-distilled” and listening to the local songs that people here have been singing for many generations.

Production
Equipment:
Sony Z7, DV SD
Editor:
Avid Media Composer 3.0
Post-production: Berlin
Location: Bansko Bulgaria
10 days of shooting
10 days post –
Edition: DVD, Digi Beta for TV

Planned Premiere

Ninth International Film Festival for Mountains, Extreme Sports and Adventures, Bansko 200 9. A MEMBER OF THE INTERNATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR MOUNTAIN FILM.

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