FESTIVALS: * Oradea Summer Film (Romania)
* Asociacion Yirewa (Zamora, Spain)
* Millenium International Documentary Film Festival (Bruxelles, Belgium)
* Torup Docby Festival (Denmark)
* BulDoc - Bulgarian Documentary Days (Berlin, Germany)
* Umea European Film Festival (Sweden)
* Panorama du Film Européen (Cairo, Egypt)
* Pravo Ljudski Human Rights Film Festival (Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina)
*Docaviv (Tel Aviv, Israel) * Göteborg International Film Festival (Sweden) * Sundance Film Festival (USA) * Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival (Greece) * One World International Film Festival (Czech Republic) * ZagrebDox (Croatia) * Encounters South African International Documentary Festival (Cape Town, South Africa) * Beldocs, International Feature Documentary Film Festival (Serbia) * Movies that Matter Foundation (Amsterdam, The Netherlands) * Belfast Film Festival (Northern Ireland.) * FIFDH - Festival du film et Forum sur les Droits Humains (Geneve, Switzerland) * Full Frame Documentary Film Festival (Durham, USA) * Bergen International Film Festival (Norway) * Etonnants Voyageurs (Rennes, France) * Inconvenient Films Documentary Festival (Vilnius, Lithuania) * Ânûû-rû âboro (Koné, Nouvelle Calédonie) * Dokufest (Kosovo) * Millenium International Documentary Film Festival (Bruxelles, Belgium) * Valladolid Film Festival - Seminci (Spain) * Trieste Film Festival (Italy) * Flahertiana IDFF (Perm, Russia) * Minsk International Film Festival (Republic of Belarus) * Glasgow Film Festival (UK) * One World Romania (Bucharest, Romania) * Doc Cévennes - Festival international du documentaire en Cévennes (Lasalle, France) * London Human Rights Watch FF (UK) * Docs Against Gravity Film Festival (Poland) * Sofia International Film Festival (Bulgaria) * Filmfest DC (Washington, USA) * British Film Institute (BFI) (London, UK) * Fidadoc (Agadir, Maroc) * IFI Documentary Film Festival (Ireland) * Cleveland International Film Festival (USA)
* Mooov – films facing the world (Turnhout, Belgium) * ZINEXIT - Festival for Human Rights (Bilbao, Spain) * FIFDH-Lugano (Switzerland) * Panorama du Film Européen (Cairo, Egypt) * Shanghai International Film Festival (China) * Valletta film festival (Malta) * Crocevia di Sguardi (Torino, Italy) * Humanity House / Bios in de Buitenlucht (The Netherlands) * Luxembourg City Film Festival (Luxembourg) * European Union Human Rights Film Festival (Turkey) * Dokudoc Festival (Slovenia) * European Film Awards (Germany) * Al Este de Lima Film Festival (Perú) * Diaspora Film Festival Korea (Incheon, South Korea) * All About Freedom Festival Kaliningrad (Russia) * Nottingham Refugee Week (UK) * Musée national de l'histoire de l'immigration (France) * Zurich Human Rights Film Festival (Switzerland) * Les Jeudis du Cinéma (Switzerland) * Anyang International Youth Film Festival (South Korea) * Prinsjesfestival (Den Haag, The Netherlands) * DocuBaku International Film Festival (Azerbaijan) * Yalta International Film Festival «Eurasian Bridge» (Yalta, Russia) * FIFDH Guadeloupe (France) * Valletta Film Festival
AWARDS:: * Best Documentary award at Burgas International Film Festival
* Best Documentary Film at the Third Valletta Film Festival 2017
* Justice Matters Award-Honorable Mention at Washington International Film Festival
"The Good Postman drew us in to the moving story of Ivan, the postman in a small dying village in eastern Bulgaria. The compelling characters, the humor and the deep humanity of this beautifully made film create its impact. It is a microcosm of universal issues: the refugee crisis, the plight of rural areas and the complexities of a local election." * Objectif d'or - Millenium International Documentary Film Festival
* Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Award - Trieste Film Festival
* Special Prize - Tampere Film Festival
* Youth Jury Prize - FIFDH
* Special Mention - Let’s CEE Festival
* LET'S CEE Film Festival (Vienna, Austria)
* Lower Silesia Grand Prix - Docs Against Gravity
* Best Documentary - Al Este de Lima
* Best Documentary - Valletta Film Festival
* Best Documentary - Burgas Int'l Film Festival
* Valletta Film Festival
The Good Postman
Category |
Current Affairs, Human Interest, Migration, Politics
Year |
2016
Country |
Finland
Running time |
80'
Format |
HD
Production |
Making Movies Oy
Director |
Tonislav Hristov
A small Bulgarian village just by the Turkish border has been resisting foreign invaders since the times of the Ottoman Empire. Now its electorate of 38 elderly Bulgarians is facing a tough decision.
The Great Gate, as the village has been called for centuries because of its location, has found itself in the middle of a European crisis, as at nights asylum seekers sneak passing the border. The forgotten village has become the most important secret loophole of Europe.
Ivan, the local postman, has a vision. He decides to run for mayor and turn the dying village alive by welcoming refugees. His opponents want to close their eyes, close down the border and reintroduce communism. As the campaign goes on, Ivan soon learns that while good intentions are not enough, even the smallest deeds matter.
REVIEWS:
''Tonislav Hristov's superb documentary study of electoral process in a small Bulgarian village pulses with wider-world resonance.''
- Guy Lodge, film critic @guylodge - Variety
''Welcome to the far reaches of Europe, where even the tiny village of Great Dervent isn’t immune to the hot blast of ultra-right nationalism which is sweeping the continent. Tonislav Hristov’s documentary is decidedly cinematic and timely.''
- Fionnuala Halligan, Chief Film Critic - Screen Daily IDFA review
