“Shell in Love”
A timid snail, scarred by a childhood trauma, spends his time hiding away in his shell where he has created an imaginary version of the outside world. After a chance encounter with love he will have to face his fears and discover the wonders of reality.
Director Biography
Svilen Dimitrov was born in 1980 in Varna, Bulgaria.
He started drawing at the age of 5 and completed his first animated short at 11. In 1998 his fascination with the moving image led him to the Bulgarian National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts "Krustyo Sarafov". He studied Directing for animation and soon became known for his offbeat short films, his diverse influences ranging from Walt Disney to Tim Burton to David Lynch.
In 2004 Svilen Dimitrov created several minutes of animation for the Oscar-nominated documentary Super Size Me. He has also directed and animated over 300 commercials for Bulgarian and international clients such as "Nestle", “Telenor”, "A1", “Bella” and many others. Apart from moving pictures, Svilen also lends his talents to the printed page as an illustrator.
Svilen's graduation film, The Air Ace (2007), was selected for the Berlinale “Generation” section in 2008. His next animated short Rew Day (2012) premiered in the Annecy International Animation Film Festival’s out of competition selection. His most recent short, the animated The Magical Cake of Auntie Bantie (2015), co-directed with Georgi Dimitrov, was nominated for best director and best animated film at the Bulgarian Film Academy Awards.
Svilen recently completed his animation film Shell in Love, which combines 2D animation techniques with live-action footage.