"In On the BG Track (2002), Krassimir Terziev brings together footage from Western mainstream flms that mention Bulgaria, Bulgarians and “Bulgarianness”. The dialogue varies from typical clichés to strange attempts to attach “nationality” to exoticism. Of course, these samples merely contribute to creating a mythology from the unknown. In this way, with a slightly bitter sense of humour, the author comments on the tendency to present the unknown as something exotic, which is not only characteristic of Bulgaria and “Bulgarianness”, but also to any kind of difference, or otherness."
Boryana Rossa, "Entertainment, Propaganda, Experiment:The Technological and Social Foundations of Creative WorkUsing Video Technology", in: Edit András (ed), Transitland. Video art from Central and Eastern Europe 1989-2009, Ludwig Museum—Museum of Contemporary Art, Budapest, 2009
On the BG Track examines how film industry creates certain images of unknown, exotic cultures, as is the case with Bulgaria. The plot is structured on the juxtaposition of scenes shot on the streets of Sofia to five film excerpts. The camera follows a protagonist, walking in various parts of Sofia, then slowly zooms in, getting closer to his back, focusing on the image printed on the white t-shirt he is wearing. The image is a frame from the movie, an excerpt of which slowly fades in. Thus the printed film still is the vehicle moving the narrative between reality and fiction.
original title: По българската следа
date of production: 12/2002
project by: Krassimir Terziev
camera: Krassimir Terziev
featuring: Alexander Yanev
music & sound: Alexander Yanev
production & post-production: interSpace Media Art Center
with the support of Daniel Langlois Foundation for Arts, Science and Technologies