Glance from the Edge is a poetic journey of six individuals swept across a tapestry of Bulgarian landscapes, where they explore relationships, place, and belonging through a series of dances in the breathtakingly beautiful Bulgaria.
The impressive film captures 12 cultural and historical locations around the country and brings together directors and choreographers Kosta Karakashyan and Stephanie Handjiiska and an international team from New York, Scotland and Tunisia. The lead characters are brought to life by the prominent Bulgarian contemporary dancers Vasil Zelyamov, Gergana Ilieva, Tsveta Doycheva and Petar Grudov (alongside Karakashyan and Handjiiska). The project also brought to Bulgaria two Americans - DoP Kevin Chiu and composer Jude Icarus. Additionally, the post-production team includes the Scottish/Bulgarian DJ Andro Mathewson and the Tunisian composer Saifeddine Helal. This is not the first collaboration between Karakashyan and the American artists. After their successful film project WAITING FOR COLOR, which was selected at over 20 festivals worldwide and won the Grand Prix Lumiere at Cinédanse Festival in Canada, their collaboration continues on Bulgarian soil. The film uses the language of contemporary dance to tell an emotional story about wandering and searching for our place in the world. The locations that the film brings to life through dance are Ovech Fortress, the rock arch near Tyulenovo, Sunny Beach, the Museum of Religions in Stara Zagora, the Submerged Church near Zhrebchevo Dam, the lavender fields near Kazanlak, the Old Town in Plovdiv, the Marble Lake near Pravoslav and the brutalist apartment complexes in capital Sofia. The world premiere of the film has been in Sofia on April 29 at the Cinema House as part of the ART HORIZONS selection at Master of Art Film Festival. The two directors hope that the film will inspire the Bulgarian audience to perceive Bulgaria in a new way, and will promote it as a destination among the international audience. "If people go out after the movie and they want to dance, then we've accomplished our goal," say creators Stephanie and Kosta. The film is realized with the generous support of the National Culture Fund and with the support of the residency program of Derida Dance Center.