Czech-Slovak Cultural and Art Influence in Bulgaria Erasmus Project

Project Title

Czech-Slovak Cultural and Art Influence in Bulgaria

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: ICT – new technologies – digital competences; Creativity and culture

Project Summary

The Czech-Slovak cultural and artistic trace in Bulgaria is a project of three vocational art schools. The project was created in cooperation with the Secondary Art Glass School in Valašské Meziříčí, Czech Republic (SUPŠS VM), National High School of Stage and Film Design, Plovdiv, Bulgaria (NGSEI) and the School of Arts Trenčin, Slovak Republic (SUP TN). The receiver of the grant, SUPŠS VM has already cooperated with both schools independently in previous projects. The topic we have chosen has made it possible to link all institutions into a common project. All three countries are connected through an exciting historical period at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries when a lot of Czech and Slovak professional people helped to build the newly established Bulgarian state after it was freed from the Ottoman Empire rule. From these people, who traveled across Europe to support the idea of Slavonic reciprocity we selected the Czech architect Josef Schnitter and the Slovak writer Samuel Zachej and made two short documentaries about them.
The aim of the project was not only to point out this little known historical period but also to strengthen and develop knowledge and skills in the field of multimedia and ICT technologies. The interconnecting idea was carried out by the film teams in all activities and stages of film making, from researching and seeking information about the life and work of both personalities, through the creation of screenplays, the filming itself, to the post-production and promotion of the films. The main priority was mainly to further strengthen key competencies in vocational education. The project managed to cover all seven key competencies, mainly thanks to working in an international team, where cooperation, establishing a friendly working atmosphere and respect for all members was an important factor.
During the project, we organized two international meetings. The introductory meeting took place in December 2017, when the project officially started. At the first meeting, the details concerning the project management and its schedule were specified very well, and this later led to the fulfillment of project objectives and its intent. The second international meeting of the working team took place in October 2019. The aim of this meeting was to evaluate the course of the project so far and to finalize the work on the films before their screening at the Golden Rython Film Festival, Plovdiv 2019.
In April 2018, a short-term training activity, for teachers involved in the project, took place in Valašské Meziříčí, CZ. The C1 activity was focused on the preparation of using the research method, on deeper acquaintance with personalities and on possibilities of how to lead participants in the preparation of documents and how to ensure the subsequent quality result. The other C2-C4 activities were blended activities for students in vocational education and training. Mobility took place in September 2018 in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, in April 2019 in Trenčín, Slovakia, and in December 2019 in Plovdiv, BG. All activities were preceded by virtual preparations. During the activities, the students gradually got acquainted with the various steps in the process of making documentaries such as information retrieval, screenplay preparation, professional camera control, shooting interviews, illustration shots, basics of editing and editing programs, film poster creation and post-production work. The participants also presented the film at the Golden Rython festival in Plovdiv and presented the film themselves. The project was attended by two teachers with previous experience in different fields of filmmaking from each school, and by eight students from each school aged16-18, second and third grade from the following fields of study: Industrial Design and Applied Painting (SUPŠS VM), Theatre Makeup and Wig, Acting, Stage Design and Lighting (NGSE), Advertising and Digital Painting (SUP TN).
During the project, we managed to meet the set objectives and the intent of the project. The resulting films can be watched on the YouTube channel. We see the impact of the project in the strengthening of professional knowledge and skills, especially in the field of using multimedia technologies in audio-visual production and in further strengthening of international cooperation and in establishing new contacts. The implementation of the project has made all of the participating schools more visible in the local context and has increased their international prestige.
The topic of the project, the help of Czechs and Slovaks in building a new Bulgarian state at the end of the 19th century, was highly appreciated by the audience. In Bulgaria, this phenomenon is known, but in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, this historical fact is almost forgotten. Thanks to the films and the project, many people have realized that the interconnection of European nations is not only a 21st-century issue but has started a lot earlier.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 67920 Eur

Project Coordinator

Stredni umeleckoprumyslova skola sklarska Valasske Mezirici & Country: CZ

Project Partners

• NATSIONALNA GIMNAZIYA ZA STSENICHNII EKRANNI IZKUSTVA – PLOVDIV
• Stredna umelecka skola Trencin, Stanicna 8, Trencin