Zornitsa Nedyalkova Popgancheva ( bg, Зорница Недялкова Попганчева; born 22 June 1972), known professionally as Zornitsa Sofia, is a Bulgarian artist and filmmaker. She is best known for directing ''

Mila from Mars ''Mila from Mars'' ( bg, Mila ot Mars, Мила от Марс) is a 2004 Bulgarian film directed by Zornitsa Sophia. It was Bulgaria's submission to the 77th Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not accepte ...

'' (2004), which was Bulgaria's

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

submission to the

77th Academy Awards The 77th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on February 27, 2005, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. During ...

. Her 2017 film ''Voevoda'' was screened at the

Moscow International Film Festival The Moscow International Film Festival (russian: Моско́вский междунаро́дный кинофестива́ль, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is the film festival first h ...

Biography

Sofia was born on 22 June 1972 in

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...

, Bulgaria. She graduated from the National Academy of Fine Arts in 1996. In 1997, she specialized in

fine arts In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...

at the

School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by ...

in New York, and in advertising and graphic design at the

American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Sofia spent four years working as an art director for several international advertising agencies including Euro RSCG London. She took part in over 50 visual arts festivals and exhibitions around the world with her video art, installations and paintings before deciding to turn to filmmaking. In 2002, she specialized in film and television directing at the

National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts The Krastyo Sarafov National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts (commonly referred to as NATFIZ) is a performing, cinematic and media arts institution of higher education based in Sofia. It is the first Bulgarian university in the field of theatr ...

under the supervision of Professor

Ludmil Staikov Ludmil Ivanov Staikov ( bg, Людмил Иванов Стайков; born 18 October 1937) is a Bulgarian film director. He directed six films between 1972 and 1988. His 1972 film ''Affection (film), Affection'' won the Golden Prize at the 8th ...

Filmography

* ''

'' (2004) * ''Forecast'' (2008) * ''Voevoda'' (2017) * ''Mother'' (2022)

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sofia, Zornitsa 1972 births Living people People from Sofia Film people from Sofia Bulgarian filmmakers Bulgarian film directors Bulgarian screenwriters School of Visual Arts alumni American University alumni National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts alumni