From October 5 until October 16 Bulgaria’s capital Sofia is to host the second edition of the Cinema- Literature Festival Cinelibri. The programme of the event offers over 100 screen versions of 18 feature films, a documentary movie as well as 10 Bulgarian movies and a world film premiere. This year events will be held in Bulgaria’s capital and other Bulgarian cities such as Plovdiv, Vratsa, Vidin, Targovishte, Lovech and Sliven. The guests of the festival will again witness a perfect symbiosis between literature and cinema. CineLibri is to present to the local audience some of the most-successful screen versions of popular literature masterpieces, as well as some classical movies and less popular films. The event also envisages meetings with writers, actors, film directors and script writers from all parts of the globe. Director of the festival JacquelineWagenstein presented to Radio Bulgaria some of the guests of this year’s festival.

“The guests would not regret going to any of the films at this year’s festival, because we made a very strong selection. We have selected exemplary screen versions of books. The official opening of Cinelibri will be held on October 5 in Hall 1 at the National Palace of Culture. This year we invited a special guest star-Frédéric Beigbeder who is a very popular French writer, film director and journalist. Frédéric Beigbeder is an extravagant personality and a sex symbol of French literature. He will give the official start of the second edition of Cinelibri with his latest film The Ideal. Mr Beigbeder will receive the first honorary statuette of the festival. The audience will witness a remarkable multimedia performance. We decided to honor FrédéricBeigbeder with Cinelibri’s first statuette, because he has the ability to stir public opinion with his works and behavior. He also contributed to the promotion of the idea of divergence as a main principle in modern society. He is able to oppose to existing rules, morals and religion. The statuette is also bestowed for his aptitude for non-standard and forbidden things, as well as for original ideas”,Jacqueline Wagenstein went on to say.

Celebrated Czech director, script writer and Oscar laureate Jiri Menzel will also arrive in Bulgaria, in order to present his movie I Served the King of England under the eponymous novel by BohumilHrabal. Charming Bulgarian actor Ivan Barnev is a leading star in that movie. The Bulgarian audience will have the opportunity to meet with ArnonGrunberg. Mr Grunberg wrote 12 novels and is a laureate of many awards. He is perhaps the most best-selling and popular contemporary Dutch writer. ArnonGrunberg presents his film Tirza at CineLibri. The programme of the festival also includes exceptional productions such as the biographical Drama Genius which gathered Colin Firth, Jude Law and Nicole Kidman together on the film stage. The movie tracks the life of legendary American literature editor MaxwellPerkins during the period when he worked at Scribner publishing house over works by ThomasUlf,ErnestHemingway and ScottFitzgerald. The audience will also have the chance to watch the movie Elle, director PaulVerhoeven. The French film star IsabelleHuppert takes part at that movie. CineLibri festival will also present Eternity movie. AudreyTautou stars in the movie. The guests of the festival will also have the opportunity to watch some film classics such as the screen version of the novel ToKillaMockingbird by HarperLee. Thefestival also features the controversial movie The Lover by MargueriteDuras, director Jean-JacquesAnnaud and the movie OfMiceandMen under JohnErnstSteinbeck’s novel. EwanMcGregor makes his debut as film director through the adaptation of PhilipRoth’s masterpiece AmerianPastoral.

The team of CineLibri festival is looking forward to an unforgettable experience in the magical atmosphere of books and cinema.

English version: Kostadin Atanasov