Life Almost Wonderful

Original Title: Life Almost Wonderful

85' | 2013 (Completed)

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Director:	Svetoslav Draganov
Producer:	Paul Pauwels
Writer:	Svetoslav Draganov

Full credits

The Liliev brothers share a surname but don't seem to have anything else in common, not even a father...

synopsis

The Liliev brothers share a surname but don't seem to have anything else in common, not even a father. They got the name from their mother Lily, who is no longer alive. The eldest brother, Alexander, is a hairdresser who likes wearing make-up and taking part in hairdressing contests. The middle brother, Bozhidar, has chosen to live as a monk but finds it difficult to keep to his vows. The youngest, James, is a macho type of guy who wants to be a TV star and is planning to marry his girlfriend. Happiness for them all may still be out of reach but no more than a hope away...It's been five years since their mother passed away and the last remaining family bond they share is an estranged grandmother, their mom's mom, who they barely know. In an emotional revelation she talks about the men's youth, her always absent daughter and the hardships they all have been through and continue to face. Alexander, Bozhidar and James try to find their place in the world and despite choosing different paths to go along, surprising as it may seem, manage to stick together. The world might sometimes be cruel to them but they consider life wonderful. Happiness is still out of reach but not more than a hope away...
Life Almost Wonderful volgt de lotgevallen van drie broers uit een disfunctionele familie. Reeds in 2002 draaide de regisseur een documentaire over deze familie, in een periode dat Bulgarije hoopte op beterschap na het verdwijnen van het communistische regime. 10 jaar later is deze beterschap er niet gekomen en is integendeel de familie kleiner geworden. De moeder is overleden, net als een stiefzoon en twee zussen zijn van de familie vervreemd. In de nieuwe film volgen we drie broers die ondanks het feit dat de wereld hen niet direct zacht behandelt toch blijven geloven in het geluk. Op de voorgrond staat de meest exentrieke van de drie: Alexander.

Credits

Director
Svetoslav Draganov
Producer
Paul Pauwels
Writer
Svetoslav Draganov
Editing
Zornica Blyangova
Photography
Veselin Hristov
Sound
Ivan Andreev
Music
Boris Changarov

Format

Creation details

Type
Film
Category
Doc
Production share
Minority Flemish co-production
Belgium
Genre
Year of production

2013
Production status
Completed
Original title
Life Almost Wonderful
Original language
Bulgarian

Technical specs

Running time
85'
Available in
2D
Aspect ratio
16:9
Sound format
stereo (2.0)
Colour
Colour

Contact & sales

Contact

Congoo

Biezebeemden 3
1570 Testelt
Belgium

paul.pauwels@congoo.tv

Details

Festivals & awards

Festivals

2014: Regional competition - ZagrebDox (HR), Documentary Competition - Sofia Film Fest (BG), Fresh Danube Films Section - Cinema City/Novi Sad (RS), Main Competition - International Documentary Film Festival Flahertiana (RU), Main Programme - Vilnius Documentary Film Festival (LT), Cine Doc Tbilisi (GE), Bul Doc Festival (DE), Cottbus Film Festival (DE), Main Competition - Budapest International Documentary Festival (HU)
2013: Competition for Feature-Length Documentary - International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam/IDFA (NL), Golden Rhyton Bulgarian Non-Fiction Fest (BG)