Even in times of extraordinary measures against a threat that puts people away from each other, a true creative personality would not stay home, but would rather open their senses even more to explore the surrounding world.

Thus, "at a fast pace" and literally in the space of just two days, Stiliyan Ivanov made his last documentary. He is the author of more than 50 documentary films, and the latest one, Life as an Epidemic, has been uploaded on several platforms within the past two days and has already been watched by nearly 20,000 viewers.

The film tells the story of an extraordinary Bulgarian entrepreneur who, in times of crisis, tries to raise the spirit of his countrymen with his personal example and create a sense in his workers that they are not alone and will not be abandoned. The director sees in the person of the entrepreneur Dimitar Georov, the film's protagonist, a contemporary model for imitation.

"What I like about him is that he never talks about surviving the crisis, but about our lives here and now. I realized that only when we value life as it is, do we have a way to live in dignity and without fear. It all depends on our spirit and our beliefs. This can be achieved by courageous people only and it is good that there are still such examples as Dimitar Georov ," says Stiliyan Ivanov:

"The idea about this film was born just a week ago - on Tuesday, when I met with Dimitar Georov. He told me about the situation that he found himself into for yet another time since 1993 when he turned a small brick factory into a modern giant enterprise furnished with computers, robots and cutting-edge equipment. But to this day, this entrepreneur keeps facing difficulties of all kinds. However, he is a struggling Bulgarian, 75 years old, and does not easily give up. At our meeting, he mentioned that he was going to take yet another bank loan, but this time for the workers so that he could pay them some advance wages. Then I suggested that our crew could accompany him in the next two days so that we could meet with the workers and see what one day in his life looked like”, the film director explains.

We were very impressed with the energy that Georov imparted to the people around him, Stilyan Ivanov says, adding:

“Georov gathers people every week at the factory's big hall, informing them about the tasks lying ahead. He makes a public commitment about what he intends to do and then reports on the promises made. Of course, he motivates his people materially, but he also gives them courage and hope. Therefore, they feel like they are part of a large family and live with the feeling that they will never be abandoned. And the feeling that no one thinks about the people is a common fear for many of today's Bulgarians. The factory has about 70 people - technologists, engineers and workers with all educational qualifications, they are young and old alike. This is shown in the film, but mostly one can hear Georov’s words as he speaks to them about the national hero Vasil Levski, about ancient Thracian culture, about the power of Bulgaria and about how no matter how much Bulgarians have run into difficulties, they have always managed to cope with them. These are the national enlightenment leaders of today. And thanks to such visionaries who existed in our history, we have been able to keep our spirit alive and we still manage to preserve ourselves as a nation."

From a very young age, this man has had many difficulties, but it was namely this experience that made him appreciate life and cherish it dearly, explains Stiliyan Ivanov:

"During the filming, I became convinced that actually younger workers were more low-spirited and discouraged, because they had not yet encountered difficulties on their way. There is an ancient saying that in a quiet time all boats are sailing but whether a boat is sailing well is understood only when it hits a stormy sea. Then it becomes clear who the good captains are. Life gets clearer when you go through a type of crisis like the current one. Even if someone tries to orchestrate the crisis, their efforts will fail in the end. Now, thanks to people like Georov, the moral seeds for the new generation of Bulgarians are being sown.”

The film itself is professionally made to the standards of contemporary filmmaking as some of the footage was taken using a drone and cinema optics. Being made in a record short time is not at the expense of the film’s quality. Viewers can now watch it and see for themselves, film director Stiliyan Ivanov concludes.

English Rossitsa Petcova