Past screening

Sofia’s Last Ambulance

Directed by: Ilian Metev
Runtime: 1hr 16min Year: 2012
Watch trailer

Details

Directed by: Ilian Metev
Runtime: 1hr 16min Year: 2012
Country: Croatia, Bulgaria, Germany
Last Screened: Thu 2nd Oct 2014

Doctor Krassi, nurse Mila and driver Plamen are the overworked crew of one of the last operating ambulances in Sofia, Bulgaria. We observe as they race through the night, struggling to save lives in the face of a lack of resources.

Sofia, the capital city of Bulgaria, has over two million inhabitants but with a medical infra-structure in ruins the fleet of 13 ambulances are hardest hit. Armed with dedication, humour and cigarettes, they race through the night, struggling to save lives in the face of a lack of resources, a crumbling infrastructure and roads that are more pothole than tarmac.

Winner of the Visionary Award at Cannes Critics Week, Director Ilian Metev focuses the camera closely on the ambulance crew, capturing changes in their state of mind as the gruelling shift drags on. Sofia’s Last Ambulance is a beautifully considered and artfully constructed documentary highlighting the persistent efforts of the ambulance crew to work despite lack of means, exhaustion and ineffective bureaucracy.