Metamorphoses of the theatre actor in the early Bulgarian feature films
Metamorphoses of the theatre actor in the early Bulgarian feature films

Summary/Abstract: The proposed text is part of a project of the Institute of Art Studies “Film Culture, Arts and National Images in Bulgaria” (KINO.BG), funded by the Bulgarian Science Fund2. An accent is put on the metamorphoses of the theatre actor in the early Bulgarian feature films. In focus is the idea of joining the modern European cultural traditions in the field of performing arts. One of the problems discussed in the paper is the attempt to professionalize the acting art in the field of cinema during the period. In this case, the issue of acting schools, which are often created on foreign models – Germany, France, Russia, etc., is extremely important, as in the 1920s attempts were made to establish several schools for film actors such as “Diana”, “Luna” (Moon), outside the theatre (eg Bulgarian Drama School of K. Sagaev, 1921; Drama School of N. O. Masalitinov at the National Theatre, 1925, etc.). Other important points that are addressed are the problems of translation from one language – theatrical, to another – cinematic, as most professional and semiprofessional actors worked in both theatre and cinema were amateurs. An attempt is made to rethink from a contemporary point of view the accumulated throughout the years ideas, stereotypes, clichés about the development of acting in the context of the formation of the social significance of film culture in the period between the two world wars.

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