World is Big and Salvation Lurks Around, The  Bulgaria / Germany / Hungary / Slovenia
2008, 105min.
Prod.: Stefan Kitanov, Karl Baumgartner, Thanassis Karathanos, Andras Muhi, Danijel Hocevar, Script: Stephan Komandarev, Dusan Milic, Yuri Datchev, Ilija Trojanov (based on the novel by Ilija Trojanow), Dir.: Stephan Komandarev, Dir. of Phot.: Emil Christov, Compos.: Stefan Valdobrev, Prod. Design: Anastas Yanakyev, Edit.: Nina Altaparmakova.
Cast: Miki Manojlovic, Carlo Ljubek, Hristo Mutafchiev, Ana Papadopulu, Lyudmila Cheshmedzhieva, Blagovest Mutafchiev, Nikolai Urumov, Vasil Vasilev – Zueka, Dorka Gryllus, Stefan Valdobrev, Pavel Popandov, Georgi Kadurin.
This is the story of a Bulgarian boy who grows up to be a German man. After a car accident Alex can't remember even what his nameis. In an attempt to cure him from amnesia, his grandfather comes to Germany and organizes a spiritual journey for his grandson back into his past, to the country where he came from. While travelling across time and place and crossing half of Europe, they play backgammon, the simplest, and yet the most complex of all games. This game leads Alex to a realization of who he is, and that backgammon is a key to his story. Destiny is the dice we hold in our own hands and life is a game somewhere between chance and skill.
Production Company
RFF International
Pallas Film
Inforg Studio
Vertigo-Emotionfilm
Awards
Best Bulgarian Feature Film Award, Audience Award (Sofia IFF), Audience Award (Zurich IFF), Best Script Award, Best Cinematographer Award (Golden Rose FF, Varna, Bulgaria), Special Jury Award (Warsaw IFF), Grand Prix “Cinema Extraordinaire” (Bergen IFF), “Black Nights” – Jury Special Mention, Don Quijote Award (Tallinn IFF), Best Film (“The Film and the City” FF, Nova Zagora, Bulgaria), Grand Prix for Best Film, Best Actor Award (Miki Manojlovic) (Vilnius IFF).
| Komandarev, Stephan  Stephan Komandarev (born 1966, Sofia, Bulgaria)
Bulgarian director. Graduated from the Medical Academy in Sofia (1993) and the New Bulgarian University (1998), with a degree in film & TV directing. His feature film debut Dog’s Home was presented at Berlinale’s Forum. His documentaries Bread over the Fence and Alphabet of Hope have received international and national recognition. The World is Big and Salvation Lurks Around the Corner is his second full-length feature film.
Filmography
Dogs' Home (2000), The Way of Harmony (2001), Bread over the Fence (2002), Alphabet of Hope (2003), The World Is Big and Salvation Lurks around the Corner (2008).
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