Every year Europa Cinemas awards three Prizes to the Best Exhibitors of the Network and this year the Europa Cinemas Award for Entrepreneur of the Year has been awarded to Stefan Kitanov. In the official letter signed by the President of Europa Cinemas – Ian Christie and the Director General Claude-Eric Poiroux it is said that:

“The award has been awarded to Mr. Kitanov in recognition of his successful work as exhibitor of Dom na Kinoto, whose annual admissions have doubled since 2004; for creating the Sofia International Film Festival along with improving its high quality standards over the years; for his essential contribution towards the circulation and promotion of European cinema in Bulgaria through his distribution activities, as well as through the creation of Sofia Film Fest on the Road and Sofia Film Fest at the Coast. This prize also acknowledges the scope of his film production initiatives in the region, particularly the establishment of Sofia Meetings – the SIFF coproduction market, as well as his overall production and co-production activities in South-Eastern Europe.”

This prize will be presented at the 17th Europa Cinemas Network Conference in Paris, at the Award Ceremony on Friday 23rd November at cinema l’Arlequin in Paris.

The Award for Best Entrepreneur of the Year 2012 pays tribute to the commitment of Stefan Kitanov and his team, who for the past 20 years have tirelessly championed the dissemination of European cinema in Bulgaria. Dom na Kinoto (Cinema House)’s manager since 1992, Kitanov founded RFF International (1994) and Art Fest (2001) – two companies, whose activities allowed him to engage in film production and distribution, as well as in the producing and organizing of festivals. Dom na Kinoto became member of Europa Cinemas in 1995 and Art Fest has been responsible for the management of the hall since 2003 (since 2007 together with Camera Ltd). Today, Art Fest has in its catalogue as distributor over 50 internationally renowned European films and the number of cinemagoers to Dom na Kinoto has doubled in nearly 10 years. Kitanov has produced more than 12 films, the most successful of which - The World Is Big and Salvation Lurks around the Corner directed by Stephan Komandarev was shortlisted for the Foreign Language Oscar and was released in over 100 countries.

But it is the Sofia International Film Festival, launched in 1997, that brought Dom na Kinoto its international fame. Recognized by the FIAPF, this festival presents first and second films in its International Competition, the cream of contemporary world cinema to the local audience, and Bulgarian and regional films to its international audiences. In 2004 the festival launched Sofia Meetings, which became one of the key coproduction markets in Europe, supported by MEDIA. In 2009 Dom na Kinoto introduced Sofia Film Fest for Students offering students and young people free and unlimited access to movies with an introduction and a discussion with established film professionals. This is a strong commitment to film education and openness to other cultures. But Kitanov’s desire to share films with ever larger audiences could not be limited to the confines of Sofia: so the same year he launched the Sofia Film Fest on the Road – which continued the festival showcase he had already introduced to Burgas and Plovdiv. "Operation Kino", a project supported by MEDIA Mundus, runs in cooperation among the festivals of Sofia, Sarajevo, Cluj (TIFF) and Istanbul for the circulation of European and independent films throughout Southeast Europe via the Europa Cinemas network. The Bulgarian Operation Kino includes now over 15 towns with a clear idea and potential that their number climbs up to more than 20 in the next couple of years.

You can read the whole article on SIFF's website.