PRODUCTION: Anri Koulev Works on Bulgarian Fighter Pilots Drama

15-07-2025

PRODUCTION: Anri Koulev Works on Bulgarian Fighter Pilots Drama

By Katerina Lambrinova

SOFIA: The historical feature Pilots directed by Anri Koulev and supported by the Bulgarian National Film Center is welcoming coproducers sharing the passion for flight and pilot films, which are according to the director “a separate genre with its own huge audience”.

Set in the 1960s, Pilots follows a forgotten Bulgarian war veteran who meets an African-American pilot who once bombed Sofia in WW2. Their unexpected encounter revives memories of lost comrades and impossible battles. Through Stoyan’s reflections, we revisit the desperate final days of young Bulgarian fighter pilots who dared to defend their skies in bloody air battles. The film questions the thin line between duty and murder, exploring what drives young pilots to sacrifice themselves and the morality of bombing “deserving” cities while revealing a Bulgaria often forgotten: bombarded, suffering, yet heroic.

Andrey Koulev and Asya Kovanova penned the script.

“The atmosphere will balance between the harsh realism of the events and the poetic nostalgia for youth, lost honour and the internal battles that the characters carry within themselves. The film will draw inspiration from the prose of Joseph Heller and Kurt Vonnegut, whose works depict the absurdity of war and human relationships that are simultaneously tragic, ironic and extremely profound. Because traditional staged filmmaking cannot attain true documentary authenticity, the genre often necessitates the decisive use of computer simulations, whether photorealistic 3D animation or tactile stop-motion techniques, to recreate experiences and textures that live-action cannot”, director Anri Kulev told FNE.

Svetlana Ganeva and Anri Koulev are producing through Bulgaria’s Koulev Film Production in coproduction with Bulgaria’s Dolly Media Studio, Magic Shop Rental, and the Bulgarian National Television.

The project received a production support of  767,236 EUR from the Bulgarian National Film Center, 10,230 EUR support from the Municipality of Burgas, as well as coproduction backing from the Bulgarian National Television.

The tоtal budget is 1,296,298 EUR.

“Amid today’s complex geopolitical landscape, the military drama Pilots aims to bring to younger generations a powerful story of heroism and sacrifice, honouring the young Bulgarian aviators who defended Sofia, figures who must not be forgotten, replaced, or overlooked. Given the presence of key German characters in the script, a coproduction with Germany is both natural and strategically sound. The project is targeting European film support programmes such as Creative Europe MEDIA and Eurimages. We are actively pursuing coproduction opportunities and pre-distribution across the Balkans (including Greece, North Macedonia, and Serbia), as well as throughout Europe and beyond”, producer Svetlana Ganeva told FNE.

As the story takes place over two seasons in Sofia and Burgas, the 36 shooting days will be divided into two filming periods: three weeks in February - March 2026, and three weeks in November - December 2026. The final postproduction will be completed in June 2027.

The producer is seeking a coproducer, postproduction partners, and international sales agents, with the project open to global collaboration and aiming for international distribution across major festivals, markets, and VOD platforms.

The film will be distributed in Bulgaria by Profilms.

Production Information:

Director Anri Koulev, credit: Svetlana Ganeva Producer:
Koulev Film Production (Bulgaria)
Anri Koulev: anrikoulev@gmail.com
Svetla Ganeva: svekolka@rocketmail.com