My Mate Manchester United [SEP] director
My Mate Manchester United
My Mate Manchester United () is a Bulgarian documentary film written and directed by Stefan Valdobrev. The film premièred during the 2011 Sofia International Film Festival and went on to air at a number of international festivals around the world, including the Cannes Film Festival. The film follows the story of unemployed construction worker Martin Zdravkov Levidzhov from the Northern Bulgarian town of Svishtov and his struggle to have his name legally changed to that of his favourite football club Manchester United. The story does not concentrate on the fan
2006-2007 Valdobrev spent two productive years specializing in film directing at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (FAMU). There he made a few short films, attended a Miloš Forman workshop and visited the lectures of Otakar Vavra and Jaromir Sofr. His graduate short film "Hide" in 2007, marked the beginning of a professional collaboration and friendship with the acclaimed Mexican director of photography Antonio Riestra.
Back in Sofia he started working on a documentary film project named "My Mate Manchester United" - the story of