Phone scammers, lifetime savings and the choice of a female pensioner to emerge from the trap of modern lawlessness with dignity are in focus in the latest film Hello of the acclaimed Bulgarian filmmaker Stephan Komandarev. The principal photography of “Hello” will begin in the middle of January 2022 in the town of Shumen (Northeastern Bulgaria) with the participation of some of Bulgari’s best actors – Assen Blatechki, Stefan Denolyubov, Ivan Barnev, Gerasim Georgiev-Gero and Professor Ivaylo Hristov. Actress Eli Skorcheva, who was a film star in the 1980’s, is the main character in the film. She will play a seventy-year-old retired teacher Blaga who lost all her savings in a phone scam. The lack of justice made the elderly woman take things in hand. The plot of the movie is very topical, because many Bulgarians, mainly seniors, have lost their savings in the so-called phone frauds.

Against the backdrop of this criminal case, Stephan Komandarev’s film reveals other types of problems of Bulgarian retirees, both personal and social. Thus, the plot of the movie Hello turned out to be a logical continuation of Stephan Komadarev’s last two films – Directions (2017) and In Circle (2019), which reveal the economic and moral crisis in modern Bulgarian society.

“We make every film project with a lot of effort, emotions and willingness to stir up discussions on the current developments in our country. Of course, we work very hard on the dramaturgy itself, because this is what makes the viewer watch a movie. Messages come second.”

Stephan Komandarev and co-writer Simeon Ventsislavov have been working over the project for years, in order to make the story strong and fascinating. They drew inspiration from real life. “We do not have the ambition to cover all topics of our reality”, Stephan Komandarev said. In his latest film, he focuses on what is happening with the generation of our mothers and fathers and tries to find out whether they live a well-deserved life.

“The attitude of a given society towards its senior people is indicative of the state of the society itself. Dignity is the key word here. In other words, people who worked decently and honestly all their lives and took care of us deserve to afford basic things such as heating at home, good food and cultural life.”

The film Hello is a co-production of Bulgaria, France and Germany. One of the main filming locations is the protagonist’s flat in the town of Shumen. It offers a view of the Founders of the Bulgarian State Monument. Isn’t it ironic?

Editing by: Vesela Krasteva (interview by Miglena Stefanova, BNR- Shumen)

English: Kostadin Atanassov

Photos: Miglena Sfetanova