THE WORLD IS BIG AND SALVATION LURKS AROUND THE CORNER / СВЕТЪТ Е ГОЛЯМ И СПАСЕНИЕ ДЕБНЕ ОТВСЯКЪДЕ

Annotation
The World  is Big and Salvation Lurks Around  the Corner is the story of Alex who, with the help of his charismatic grandfather, Bay Dan, embarks on a journey in search of himself – on a tandem bike and with a set of backgammon.

Synopsis
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 name is. In an attempt to cure him from amnesia, his grandfather Bai Dan comes to Germany and organizes a spiritual journey for his grandson back into his past, to the country where he came from. While traveling 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.

Director: Stephan Komandarev
Producers: Stefan Kitanov, Karl Baumgartner, Thanassis Karathanos, Andras Muhi, Danijel Hocevar, coproducer Goran Radakovic
Script: Stephan Komandarev, Dusan Milic, Yuri Datchev, Ilija Trojanov
Based on the novel by Ilija Trojanow
Cinematographer: Emil Christov
Editor: Nina Altaparmakova
Music: Stefan Valdobrev
Cast: Miki Manojlovic, Carlo Ljubek, Hristo Mutafchiev, Ana Papadopulu, Lyudmila Cheshmedzhieva, Blagovest Mutafchiev, Nikolai Urumov, Vasil Vasilev – Zuek, Dorka Gryllus, Stefan Valdobrev, Pavel Popandov, Georgi Kadurin
Production: RFF International / Pallas Film / Inforg Studio/ Vertigo-Emotionfilm
In co-production with: Bulgarian National Television and Dakar D.O.O.

With the support of: Bulgarian National Film Center/Mitteldeutsche Medienfoerderung / EURIMAGES / Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg / Hungarian Motion Picture Public Foundation / German Federal Film Fund / Slovenian Film Fund / Serbian Film Center / MEDIA Programme of the EU / SEE Cinema Network / i2i Audiovisual

Selected Awards
Foreign Language Oscar - Shortlist
Sofia IFF - Audience Award, Best Bulgarian Feature Film Award
Zurich IFF - Audience Award
Warsaw IFF - Special Jury Award
Bergen IFF – Main Jury Award „Cinema Extraordinaire”
Tallinn IFF „Black Nights” – Jury Special Mention, Don Quijote Award
Vilnius IFF - Grand Prix for Best Film, Special Jury Award for Acting  to Miki Manojlovic
Almaty IFF – Best Actor Award for Miki Manojlovic
Taipe IFF – Audience Award
Sevastopol IFF – Best Actor Award for Miki Manojlovic
Durres IFF – Best Director
Festroia IFF Setubal – Best Director, SIGNIS Award, Audience Award
Benalmadena IFF – Best Film, Young Jury Award
Saturno IFF Alatri – Best Film, Best Actor Award for Miki Manojlovic
Noa’s Arc IFF Moscow – Best Script
European Film Festival Eritrea – Audience Award
Palm Springs IFF – Runner Up for the Audience Award
LUX Prix of the European Parliament - Official Selection
“Golden Rose” FF (Varna, Bulgaria) - Best Script Award, Best Cinematographer Award (shared)

Contact for Festivals
RFF International
1, Bulgaria Sq.
1463 Sofia, Bulgaria
Tel: +359 2 9166 029
Fax: +359 2 9166 714
kita@siff.bg, vihrena@siff.bg

World Sales
m-appeal
16 Prinzessinenstr., 10969 Berlin, Germany
Tel: +49 30 6150 7505, Fax: +49 30 2758 2872
berlinoffice@m-appeal.com