The third edition of MEDIA PLAY launched at the InterContinental Sofia yesterday with a content-rich opening day spotlighting evolving market dynamics, regional cooperation, and emerging documentary voices.

The panel “What Are Content Markets All About?” welcomed Hicran Lefort (MIP Markets), Victoria Elmacioglu (NATPE), Kamila Zlatuskova (Serial Killer), and Karolina Kalinowska (TVP), moderated by Kateryna Udut. The speakers explored the nuances of buyer-seller relationships, festival-led matchmaking, and the rising value of regional IP.

In a high-energy session dedicated to Gundi – Legend of Love, Ivan Hristov and Andrey Arnaudov of Medium Station shared how the film became Bulgaria’s top-grossing title, blending national legacy with smart production and promotion strategies.

One of the day’s highlights was the panel “Series Co-Production: Regional Offers and International Expectations”, moderated by Hristo Hadjitanev. The session brought together regional commissioning editors and producers to discuss balancing local relevance with global viability.

The day concluded with the Docu Pitching Session, curated by Martichka Bozhilova (Agitprop) and supported by Docu NOVA, a United Group channel. The session spotlighted four powerful documentary projects: Forbidden Aunt by Bojana Novakovic – an intimate look at Balkan identity through family secrets; Death Café by Mariana Sabeva & Viktoria Mitreva – exploring modern rituals around loss and grief; The Forest Glade by Oksana Savoskina – uncovering the legacy of post war trauma in Ukraine; and SubBalcans by Sergiu Scobioala – a road doc tracing the cultural contradictions of the region.

The pitches received strong engagement from industry guests, with several projects generating interest for further development discussions.

The day wrapped with a Welcome Cocktail and a packed screening of Operation Sabre at Odeon Cinema, followed by a Q&A with creators Goran Stanković and Vladimir Tagić.

MEDIA PLAY is an event dedicated to the audiovisual media and entertainment, organized for a third consecutive year in Sofia, Bulgaria. Initiated in 2023 by several regional producers and distributors as a series of friendly discussions on the state of the content business, the first edition made it clear that having such an event is very beneficial for and warmly accepted by the local industry and the professionals in formation. The program was enriched with more panels, trends and content presentations, showcases of funding opportunities for film and TV projects not only from Bulgaria, but also from Croatia, Serbia, Poland, Turkey, Greece, Ukraine, Moldova, Cyprus and other countries.