The 10th edition of the “All about Economy Film Days” 19-21 April 2023, Sofia (Bulgaria)
19-21 April 2023, for the second time in a row, we will be holding our event at the Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”. The 10th edition of the festival All About Economy Film Days has a title “An Unclear Shape of an Alternative International System”. This time the participants will watch the documentaries and have discussions on geopolitical opposition of China vs Western world from an economic point of view; international supply chains, their disruption and reorientation; inflation, its explanation and the priority given to the phenomenon in economic policies. We expect that our keynote speakers will bring a fresh perspective to our economic event.
We are looking forward to seeing you at our event!
view details of the previous Economy Film Days events
It was a great honor and pleasure for us to partner with the Sofia University and we would like to give special thanks to Assoc. Professor Kosyo Stoychev, PhD for his help in organizing this event and for being a speaker for the 9th edition of the festival All About Economy Film Days, which was hosted by Sofia University on 17-20 May, 2022 with the topic: “Times of Change and New Prospectives”. Students from Switzerland and Bulgaria and Bulgarian academics actively participated in this event. Discussions between Swiss and local students lead to new insights.
Thanks to all participants!
Press release of the 9th edition by Sofia Unversity
Dear Participants,
Due to the Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, the organizers of All About Economy Film Days had to change the country of our venue from the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia to Sofia University in Bulgaria.
Topic: Times of Change and New Prospectives
Dates: 17-20 May 2022
In addition to the films themselves, we will have discussions with lecturers from the partner Sofia University and external guest lecturers and a city tour wih local students.
The festival team is looking forward to meeting you at our event.
The 7-th Edition of All About Economy Film Days, 3-5 June 2020
Dear Participants,
The organizers of All About Economy Film Days are inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: All About Economy Film Days
Time: Jun 11, 2020 11:00 AM Zurich
Duration 1h
Join Zoom Meeting
https://hslu.zoom.us/j/91112056941?pwd=Uit1cE5VWGRYd0gwNVVZdjdPSmV2UT09
Meeting ID: 911 1205 6941
Password: 176955
Please, watch The Counterfeiters film before the Zoom meeting. The link to The Counterfeiters film:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/kckeidzq0m2vmqm/The.Counterfeiters_Die%20Fälscher.barm.mkv?dl=0
In your Movies & TV player menu, please choose original German audio and the English subtitles if necessary.
The festival team is looking forward to e-meeting you online.
Our team is very happy to announce the second online All About Economy Film Days festival between 3-5 June, 2020.
The event was to be held in Sofia at New Bulgarian University but due to the coronavirus outbreak we will do it online. New Bulgarian University remains our partner for this event.
We will focus on:
Money: Transformation and Financial Innovation
Our keynote speakers will be recognized professors, economists and leading specialists in financial sector from Bulgaria, Romania and Switzerland.
The live festival will be streamed via Zoom.us. Link to the live stream will be additionally provided to all participants.
The festival programme is under the development.
The festival team is looking forward to e-meeting you at our online event.
Film Festival Program 7th edition 3-5 June 2020 final
The 6-th Edition of All About Economy Film Days, 1-3 April 2020
Title: Opportunities in Reshaping Money and Financial Services: What is at Stake?
As the COVID-19 outbreak spreads, All About Economy Film Days festival was turned into a virtual event.
It was held on 1-3 April 2020 online in cooperation with the University of Bucharest and under the high patronage of the Embassy of the Swiss Confederation in Romania.
Despite some technical difficulties, we tried to make our first online event interesting, exciting and fun. Our expert speakers put their maximum efforts and created an atmosphere of attention and participation. And students learnt a lot about cryptocurrency, community currencies, Britain’s trusts, digital currencies from films, lectures, presentations and during the workshops where they worked in mixed Swiss-Romanian groups.
Students voted for the festival films and selected The Spider’s Web: Britain’s Second Empire as the best documentary film and a modern Romanian film Hawaii as the best feature film. Hawaii is the second film casting Dragos Bucur which received the highest rankins from students. Last year it was Two Lottery Tickets. We make our small contribution in promoting Romanien films to the festival audience.
The most active students will be awarded for their active participation in group discussions and commenting during the online vouting for films. They are: Pekas Endy, Gospodinov Konstantin, Knezevic Marija, Voica Ana, von Euw Sandro, Elsener Michael and Milic Fabian.
Film Festival Program 6th edition April 2020, Final 31.03.20
The event in Kiev is planed for 26-28 October 2020
All About Economy Film Days, Kyiv 2020
Location: Kiev, Ukraine
Hosted by: Kyiv-Mohyla Business School
Date: 26-28 October 2020
The 5th edition of All About Economy Film Days Festival was held in Gdansk (Poland) on 28-30 of October 2019.
All About Economy Film Days, Gdansk
Location: Gdansk, Poland
Hosted by: The Gdansk University of Technology
Date: 28-30 October 2019
Link to the Economy Film Days in Gdansk 2019
Several workshops were conducted using the thematic films excerpts. The festival offered renowned guest speakers and an diverse film programme. The Ambassador of Switzerland to Poland Jürg Burri visited the official opening of the festival. In his welcome speech, he highlighted the importance of diplomacy in strengthening the relations between Switzerland and Poland. Our film days contribute to the exchange between our countries.
A link to a news-letter published on the University of Fribourg web-site
All About Economy Film Days, Bucharest 2019
Location: Bucharest, Romania
Hosted by: the University of Bucharest
Date: 10-12 April 2019
The need for renewal
One of the consequences of the economic crisis of 2008 was the loss of confidence into so-called “mainstream economics”, as taught at universities around the globe, as it was neither able to foresee the crisis, nor to propose effective and uncontroversial countermeasures. Its overly abstract and mathematized language is today criticized for being too remote and cryptic.
An economics for the people
There is a growing demand for an economics striving for clarity, methodological pluralism, social responsibility and ethical sensitivity – a social science willing to incorporate the broader concern for the common good into its theoretical edifice, and able to explain the consequences of economic decisions to a wider audience.
For the economy concerns us all – its discussion must not be restricted to specialists. Better-informed citizens are a prerequisite for sustainable development.
Film as a didactic means
The organizers of the All about Economy Film Days are convinced that films are a suitable medium to involve students and a wider public into economic topics, as films are able to elucidate ethical dilemmas and pair facts with emotions.
What should the economy of the future look like?
The festival wants to spread optimism and illustrates attempts to bring about change. For it is possible to improve the economic environment, in which we live and work.
Discussions between critical filmmakers, academia, business as well as foreign and local students lead to new insights.
This event takes place within a course module of Hochschule Luzern and aims to explain economics to students in an appealing way using documentary and fiction films related to economics. Didactic approaches applied in the module include film screening, lectures, workshops, excercises and critical discussion.
One of the consequence of the economic crisis of AD 2008 was the crisis of confidence besetting so called “mainstream economics”. Economics, as lectured and taught at the leading universities around the globe, was neither able to foresee the upcoming crisis nor capable of proposing any efficient and uncontroversial countermeasure. International outcry ensued, blaming overly abstract and mathematized language of contemporary economics for being too remote and cryptic for an average citizen. The aim of domesticating the economics as science is the starting point for this conference.
read more
There has been growing public demand for an economics, in which there is a place for clarity, methodological pluralism, social responsibility and ethical sensitivity. An idea was subsequently born that a new public image of economics has to be created, which would be able to explain the consequences of certain economic decisions to the wider audience and laymen and to incorporate broader concern for social good into its own theoretical edifice.
Understanding the importance of this problem prompted professor Paul Dembinski from Fribourg University, Switzerland, to start AREF (Association for the Renewal of Research and Teaching in Economics and Finance), in which leading Swiss specialists in economics and finance has been gathered together to popularize knowledge about those two disciplines. Professor Paul Dembiński proposed Faculty of Management and Economics at Gdańsk University of Technology to cooperate in organization of film meetings on economy and economics. Such initiative fits neatly within the strategy of the Association, since primarily the event’s goal is to disseminate knowledge about economics and financial markets in an unconventional and intelligible manner.
Film seems to be the medium cut out to fulfil this lofty educational and enlightening mission. Both documentary and feature films explain perfectly mechanisms and intricacies of economy and world of finance, enabling simultaneously to comprehend point of view of various social actors, their perceptual and cognitive frameworks and their guiding moral principles. Films affect the viewers, provoke discussion, arouse curiosity, trigger interest and sensitize the viewers to the importance of economic issues.
Formula of the conference
Our conference consists of two modules: one consists of documentary films and second of fictional films. Documentary films module consists of screenings of some of the most insightful documentaries recently made on the economy-related topics, preceded by a short lecture.
Fictional films module consists of a lecture by one of our keynote speaker which discusses certain aspects of a modern economy and economics, next illustrated by motion picture.
DAY 1: International supply chains, their disruption and reorientation
09:00 Official Opening:
His Excellency, Mr Raymund Furrer, Ambassador of Switzerland in Bulgaria
Michael Derrer, Festival Director
Representatives of University of Sofia
Olga Belous, Festival Art Director
09:30 Documentary film: Chain Reaction (2022)
Runtime 54 min
Commented by: PhD Kaloyan Tsvetkov - Economic and social geography, Geo-urban studies, Ethno-political conflicts, Regional geography; Faculty of Geology and Geography
11:30 Globalization: Winners and losers in world trade (1/2) DW Documentary
Runtime 42 min
Commented by: PhD candidate Kiril Nikolov – Ethno-political conflicts, Minorities and refugee processes ; Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
14:00 Manufacturing in America, post-globalisation
Runtime 32 min
Commented by: PhD Kristian Lukanov - Regional and political geography, Geopolitics and geostrategy; Faculty of Geology and Geography
15:15 Swiss Feature Film: CEUX QUI TRAVAILLENT, THOSE WHO WORK (2018)
Runtime 1 h 41 min
Commented by: Michael Derrer – Festival Director, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts
18:00 Networking Event
Aula of the University
DAY 2: Geopolitical opposition of China vs Western world from an economic point of view
09:00 Documentary film: China rising, Europe reluctant - Can America lead again?
Runtime 37:47 min
Commented by: PhD Plamen Dimitrov - political science, history, geopolitics, energy security, international security; Faculty of History
10:40 Documentary film: Economic entanglement and systemic rivalry: Germany and China at a crossroads
Runtime 37:47 min
Commented by: Senior Assistant Professor PhD Ivaylo Stamenkov - Regional and political geography; Faculty of Geology and Geography; Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
12:00 Can China still become the world’s largest economy?
Runtime 25:12 min
Commented by: Senior Assistant Professor PhD Hristo Dokov - Regional and political geography, Geoeconomics, Geography of countries; Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
14:00 Bulgarian Feature Film: Dangerous Charm (1984)
Runtime 1 h 27 min
Commented by: Assoc. Prof. PhD Ognyan Kovachev – Bulgarian literary scholar, culturologist, translator from English, researcher of Western European literature; Faculty of Slavic Studies, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
17:00 - 18:00 Cultural Programme
Alexander Nevsky Crypt icon Museum
DAY 3: Inflation, its explanation and the priority given to the phenomenon in economic policies
09:00 A short Documentary by CNBC: How inflation works
Runtime 12:30
Commented by: PhD candidate Lillyana Georgieva; Faculty of Economics and Business Administration
10:00 Documentary film: Everything You Need To Know About Money, Inflation. How The System Works
Runtime 50
Commented by: Assoc. Prof. PhD Kosyo Stoychev - Economic Geography, Regional Development; Faculty of Geology
and Geography
11:40 CNA Documentary: How Is Inflation Leading To Political Instability?
Runtime 46:27 min
Commented by: Assoc. Prof. PgD Kosyo Stoychev - Economic Geography, Regional Development; Faculty Geology and Geography
14:00 Bulgarian feature film - Whale
Runtime 1h 20 min
Commented by: Assoc. Prof. PhD Ognian Kassabov - aesthetics, Kant and German classical philosophy, political philosophy, modern philosophy, modern philosophy, ancient philosophy; Faculty of Philosophy
16:20 Student group work - The insights of the festival
Moderated by Michael Derrer
17:15-17:30 Closing ceremony
Moderated by Michael Derrer
18:00 Cultural Programme
Traditional Bulgarian Restaurant
Mag. Michael Derrer, Co-initiator and Festival Director
Hochschule Luzern and ASCENT AG
As a specialist for the renewal of didactics in economics, he recognizes the value of films to affect the viewers, provoke discussion and sensitize to the importance of economic issues. As a business consultant, he has the role of an interface between internationalizing Swiss companies and the economic environment of East and Central European countries.
www.michaelderrer.info
Assoc. Prof. Kosyo Stoychev, PhD
Head of Economic and Social Geography Regional Development and Policy Department
Experienced Associate Professor with a demonstrated history of working in the higher education industry. Strong education professional skilled in English, Management, Project Management, Strategic Planning, and Microsoft Office
Kaloyan Tsvetkov, PhD - Senior Assistant Professor at Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski
Professor Tsvetkov teaches Geodemography and Migration Processes, Urban Geography, Theoretical Geography, Economic Geography, Geography of Transport, Ethnopolitical Conflicts and Regional Geography at Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski
Professor Kristian Lukanov, PhD
Regional and political geography, Geopolitics and geostrategy; Faculty of Geology and Geography
Professor Kristian Lukanov has a PhD in Geopolitics and teachers at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” at the Department of Regional and Political Geography
Senior Assistant Professor PhD Ivaylo Stamenkov
Regional and political geography; Faculty of Geology and Geography; Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
PhD candidate Lillyana Georgieva
Faculty of Economics and Business Administration
A PhD candidate at Sofia university conducting a research in the area of the shadow economy
Assoc. Prof. PhD Ognian Kassabov
Aesthetics, Kant and German classical philosophy, political philosophy, modern philosophy, modern philosophy, ancient philosophy; Faculty of Philosophy
PhD Plamen Dimitrov
Political science, history, geopolitics, energy security, international security; Faculty of History
Plamen Dimitrov is a political analyst and historian. He has PhD from Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” with dissertation “Caspian Perspectives of European Energy Security”. His scientific publications are in the field of history and contemporary politics of Russia and post-Soviet space, geopolitics, geopolitical aspects of energy security. Plamen Dimitrov is a member of the Board of Bulgarian Geopolitical Society and member of the Editorial Board of “Geopolitics” Magazine. He is a part-time lecturer at Sofia University and has been a visiting lecturer in IR at L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Astana, Kazakhstan (2012-2014 and 2018) and visiting researcher at the Center for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan (2016).
PhD candidate Kiril Nikolov
Ethno-political conflicts, Minorities and refugee processes; Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
Senior Assistant Professor PhD Hristo Dokov
Regional and political geography, Geoeconomics, Geography of countries; Faculty of Geology and Geography, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
Assoc. Prof. PhD Ognyan Kovachev
Bulgarian literary scholar, culturologist, translator from English, researcher of Western European literature; Faculty of Slavic Studies, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”
Photo Gallery
Pictures from All About Economy Film Days, Gdansk 28-30 October, 2019 Pictures from All About Economy Film Days, Bucharest 10-12 April, 2019 Pictures from All About Economy Film Days, Sofia 2018 Pictures from All About Economy Film Days,Bucharest...
Film Awards
2019 BUCHAREST EDITION OF “ALL ABOUT ECONOMY FILM DAYS” ANNOUNCED FILM AWARDS: Jury prizes and honorable mentions were presented at a closing ceremony on April 12. The Best Documentary Film honorable title was awarded to: A World Without Money (Director: Hanspeter...
Video Footage of the Previous Event in Gdansk 2017
The first edition took place in Gdańsk, Poland in November 2017 Video impressions from the festival: Official video documentation Student video documentation Archive of the previous event in...
Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”, Conference Hall, North wing, Second floor
1504 Sofia, 15 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd.
Paul H. Dembinski
Initiator
Michael Derrer
Co-Initiator, Festival Director
Alina Savu
Director, Bucharest Edition
Olga Belous
Art Director
Contact Us:
Michael Derrer
Director of the Festival
Hochschule Luzern – Business School
michael.derrer@hslu.ch
Ascent Swiss Business Management AG
m.derrer@ascent-ag.ch
+41 79 320 21 52