Balgarianovinite.com The 23rd International Festival of Amateur Historical Films in the northeastern town of Shumen began on Friday with an official ceremony and a symbolic lighting of a fire in front of the Dobri Voynikov – 1856 Community Centre. The festival is organized by the community centre and the Madara Horseman Cinema Club, with the support of the Shumen Municipality, the Ministry of Culture and UNICA.
Guests, participants and residents of the city were welcomed by the Mayor of Shumen Municipality, Prof. Hristo Hristov, who emphasized the importance of the festival as one of the established cultural events in the city’s calendar.
“This festival brings together people who, through cinema, preserve historical memory and make it accessible to new generations. This is its greatest value,” the mayor stated in his welcome speech.
Hristov said that it is no coincidence that Shumen hosts such an event because of its rich historical and cultural heritage and emphasized the role of the city as one of the leading centres of the amateur cinema movement in Bulgaria.
A special highlight of this year’s edition is the celebration of 100 years since the beginning of the aforementioned amateur cinema movement in Shumen. According to the mayor, the anniversary is a symbol of a centuries-old tradition, built with consistency, enthusiasm and dedication by generations of cinema lovers.
“Today, authors from different countries are meeting in Shumen. They come with different experiences and different perspectives, but they are all united by respect for history and the desire for it to be told honestly and accessibly through the language of cinema,” said Hristov.
The mayor also expressed gratitude to everyone who had contributed to the development of the festival and the strengthening of the good name of Shumen for more than two decades.
After the official opening, the festive programme continued with a performance by the Vasil Abrashev Brass Orchestra, based in Targovishte, and screenings of films by Shumen authors in the community centre’s concert hall.
According to the organizers, 67 films from Bulgaria and abroad were submitted, 52 of which were selected for the competition programme of this year’s edition of the festival.
Authors from Sofia, Varna, Ruse, Dimitrovgrad, Belogradchik, Berkovitsa, Zlatograd, Karlovo, Kaspichan, Popovo, Shumen and other settlements participated, as well as representatives from North Macedonia, Spain, Portugal, Moldova and Russia. The youngest participant is 14 years old.
The festival continues until June 28 with screenings, creative meetings and an awards ceremony. 23rd International Festival of Amateur Historical Films Begins in Shumen 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-06-26 18:07:15 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law