site.btaBolhrad Hosts Fifth OKO International Ethnographic Film Festival

The fifth edition of the OKO International Ethnographic Film Festival opened on September 8 in the city of Bolhrad, Ukraine.

The organizers expressed their deep gratitude to the Bolhrad city administration and its other partners, including the National Film Centre of Bulgaria and the Sofia Municipality.

"The idea of the festival is to unite large and small nations, communities, filmmakers, folklorists and ethnographers for better mutual understanding," they said. The festival gathers and disseminates customs, folk art and crafts, as well as the unique colour of the peoples of Bessarabia and the whole world.

The initiator of this remarkable project is Tetiana Stanieva, a citizen of Ukraine and an ethnic Bulgarian.

The first edition of OKO took place in 2020, when over 1,000 films submitted applications, but only 43 of them from 29 countries were selected for the competition programme, and 7 more films were shown out of the competition. 

"This event is an integral part of the cultural life of our community. The festival not only shows the beauty of cinema, but also tells the truth," noted the Mayor of Bolhrad. 

"Many people ask me why I don't organize the festival in Kyiv or Odesa, where all the resources are available. But this festival was created especially for Bessarabia. This is my gift to this region that I love so much," Staneva said.

This year's programme includes 114 films, 92 of which can be viewed online on the festival's website or on the Megogo platform for free.