The popular TV presenter wants BGN 100,000 for a film title
The popular from Nova TV economic analyst Kuzman Iliev wants BGN 100,000 for the name of the Bulgarian film “Speculators” or it will not be shown in the cinemas of the country. This is the most dramatic plot on the topic of copyright in all of Bulgarian history.
It’s Kuzman Iliev known from the former transmission
“Plus or minus
The comment after the news ”on Nova TV, which he hosted together with Vladimir Sirkarov.
This amount was requested by one of the screenwriters – Kuzman Iliev and literally hours before the announced start of the screening the film was renamed by the producers of “Exchange Players”.
On Wednesday night, many friends of the cinema and the team were invited to the premiere of the film “Speculators”, defined as the first Bulgarian financial thriller. The screenwriters of the film are Kuzman Iliev, Alexander Chobanov and Ilian Skarlatov.
Viewers watch with interest the film, shot in a completely European way, but wonder why it has a different title – “Exchange Players”. Why did all this really happen?
The beginning of this story is more than 5 years ago. It begins as a male conversation between Kuzman Iliev and Nikolai Hristov-Fori. Both are classmates from the French High School in Sofia. Nikolai is the son of Hristo Hristov, co-owner of the company KORUND-X.
Then Martin Iliev, Alexander Chobanov and the director Georgi Kostov were involved in the project.
“Hundreds ungrateful hours mole
intellectual Job,
thinking, writing, discussing and building an idea, which became the basis for a strong scenario “, says Kuzman Iliev, who was also a candidate for MP from IMRO, but failed to get into parliament.
Iliev also says: “Work of a team of several people in cafes, garages, offices and various locations. Hours of investor persuasion at the synopsis level for the film’s potential. Hundreds of sleepless nights and long phone conversations, before there was even a chance and a prospect of winning a subsidy from the NFC … “
Everything seems to be going well. Nothing portends a storm to come.
But four days before the premiere in CORUND-X, they understand that a year ago Kuzman Iliev kept the name “Speculators” in the patent office. “We called Kuzman many times on his mobile phone, but he did not answer,” said Hristo Hristov, co-owner of CORUND-X.
And only a day before the premiere on April 6, the production company learns that co-writer Kuzman Iliev has sent a letter to all cinemas in the country, banning the film from being broadcast with the title “Speculators”.
This caused the producers to react “to the fire” and after the relevant procedures in the patent office the title of the film became “Exchange Players”. The main roles are played by Alek Alexiev, Radina Kardzhilova, Marian Valev, Dimitar Banenkin, Boryana Bratoeva, Darin Angelov and others. The director is Georgi Kostov.
In the inscriptions as
co-writer
is recorded
and Ilian Scarlatov
According to Nikolay Hristov, it was Kuzman Iliev who brought him to the team. Now he calls him an impostor. “Kuzman saw that a very good film was made, and decided to prove that the main credit for everything is his,” says Nikolai Hristov.
He has no other explanation why Iliev patented the name of the film a year ago and did not tell anyone about it.
His father Hristo Hristov has no explanation. He says that all the time after the patenting of the title Kuzman Iliev came and behaved as a friend and supporter. He presented him with his new book with the inscription: “To Hristo Hristov – the great producer and an even greater man!”. He literally got sick after learning about the latest performances of his former producer.
After the outbreak of the scandal, Kuzman Iliev posted a letter on the Internet entitled “It’s time to fight the film mafia.” The letter contains his demands to CORUND-X:
1. The imposter Ilian Scarlatov to be removed from the inscriptions “screenwriter”,
to be removed from the title of “producer”, because when he talked to Kuzman Iliev about his participation in the project, he did not set such conditions. If he had changed his demands, he should have communicated it with Kuzman Iliev. Ilian Scarlatov should not be at the premiere of the film. This is not negotiable – you would not invite a thief to your child’s ball – I find this logical. To buy a ticket and watch it in another hall – no one can stop it. To guarantee – through a declaration or in another form – that Scarlatov will not speak anywhere in public that he is “screenwriter and producer” of the film.
I have no pretensions to say that he is an actor. After all, he wrote a two-minute monologue that we all have to endure, thanks to Nikolai Hristov.
2. From the moment of my consent to withdraw my claim – I take over the PR of the film, as was the agreement. Since I do not deny the production contribution of Nikolai Hristov, I will try to promote him fairly. The film is already in theaters and hell late, but whatever I managed to do, I succeeded. Better a poor horse than no horse at all.
3. Deletion of the duplicate profiles of “Kadre” on Facebook and Instagram, whose photo content is also a theft of shots by Konstantina Zhivova, who shot them during the filming process of the film.
4. Writing and public mention during the premiere by Nikolay Hristov-Fori that the idea for the film came from the screenwriter Kuzman Iliev.
5. Obtaining a framework agreement that if the second part of the film “Speculators” is made, then “Kadre” will be entitled to a share of not less than 30 percent.
7. In view of the absence of any PR and with a de facto negative potential for producer income; the thousands of levs already paid in taxes for our contribution to the film in view of unpaid 5 years of work, moral damages, lost profits; in view of fees for excellently trained and experienced human rights defenders, costs of cases, inquiries and inspections – the amount I require to partially cover my expenses, not including the important lost benefits is 100 thousand levs.
From CORUND-X they replied also by letter:
“With a contract from January 9, 2019, Kuzman Iliev joined the team as a co-writer. CORUND-X Ltd. appreciates his qualities as an expert and his contribution to the creation of the production.
Until March 28, 2022 – a week before the official premiere of the film, no one suspected that Kuzman Iliev was dissatisfied with the work on the project or had remarks or claims in connection with the realization of the script.
None of the other co-writers, who participated collectively in the creation of the film, have any claims regarding the realization of the script. On March 28, 2022, one week before the premiere of the film, we were very surprised to receive a letter, which was subsequently sent to the film’s distributors and cinemas in the country.
A contract was signed between KORUND-X and Kuzman Iliev on January 9, 2022, according to which the latter transferred to the producer the exclusive copyrights on the script of the film in their entirety.
At the time of concluding the contract
the film was with the working title “Animal Demons”,
which in September 2020, by a common decision of all co-writers, director and producer, was changed to “Speculators”. Kuzman Iliev, as a co-writer, was aware of this change, as evidenced by numerous emails and correspondence between him and the team members.
It should be borne in mind that the contract for the transfer of copyright was concluded on January 9, 2019, and Kuzman Iliev filed an application for registration of the trademark “Speculators” only on May 28, 2021 – a year and a half after the has transferred all copyrights as a co-writer to the producer CORUND-X. This request was made without the knowledge and approval of the producer or any member of the team, therefore the action is completely unscrupulous.
It is no coincidence that the fact that Kuzman Iliev owns the rights to the Speculators trademark was announced publicly a few days before the premiere of the film.
It was his actions that necessitated a last-minute change of title. We believe that films are made by people for people and we could not turn our backs on more than 5 years of work of the huge team of people behind this project. From now on, the court will decide who is right and who is wrong.
With respect:
Hristo Hristov,
Nikolai Hristov
CORUND-X has been a production company since 1993.,
registered with the National Film Center. For nearly 30 years of creative life he has produced the feature films “My Little Nothing”, “Time for Women”, “11th A” and “The rest is ashes”.
The portfolio of CORUND-X also includes documentaries and portraits of Peter Uvaliev, Nikolai Kaufman, Nikolai Gyaurov, Petko Bocharov, Georgi Parcalev and others.
The film about Dimitar Dimov – “Achilles’ Heel” won the Special Award of the Festival of Short and Documentary Film “Golden Rhyton”, Plovdiv, in 2010. CORUND-X is the winner of other local and foreign awards.
Now the court has the floor on this dispute. And “Speculators” can gather many viewers. They say there is no bad advertising.
Analyst Kuzman Iliev was also an MP candidate from the civil quota
Kuzman Iliev is an economic and political analyst, journalist and producer. He was also a candidate in the parliamentary elections in April 2021 in the list of IMRO – Bulgarian National Movement, for the 24th and 25th MIR – Sofia, raised by the civil quota.
Iliev holds a Master’s degree in Public Management from IEP Toulouse, France. Prior to that, he graduated with honors from the 9th French Language School “Alphonse de Lamartine”. In 2018 he became the winner of the award for television journalism “Saint Vlas”.
During his student years he was elected “Student of the Year” of the New Bulgarian University, and won the prestigious scholarship “Charles Moser”. He is a two-time winner in national essay competitions organized jointly by Bulgarian MEPs and the European Parliament.
He started his career on the economic television EBF. Later he co-authored and hosted the show for economics and finance Boom & Bust on Bloomberg TV Bulgaria, as well as the political evening show “The Day ON AIR” on Bulgaria On Air. During this period there is a regular analytical section in the show Investbook on Bloomberg TV Bulgaria. After some time he moved to TV “Europe”, where he co-authored and hosted the show for politics and economics “Plus-Minus”.
An invitation from Nova TV followed and in 2018, together with his colleague Vladimir Sirkarov, he started the journalistic column “Plus-minus. The comment after the news “.
Iliev is a co-founder and executive director of the production company Cadre. He is a co-founder and economic expert at the Brain Workshop Institute.
She loves reading, cinema, hiking, active sports. He is married to the journalist Konstantina Zhivova, who some time ago was the host of the show “Around the World” on Bulgaria On Air. She has worked for BTV, Nova TV, TV 7. She has also participated in the famous series “Undercover”. Today she is an influencer, painting and writing books.
They both have a marriage behind them, and Zhivova has an older daughter. In April 2019, Kuzman and Konstantina became the parents of the girl Caroline, who is Iliev’s first child.
The Speculators brand is reserved for
films and other activities and products
Kuzman Iliev filed an application with the Patent Office for registration of the trademark “Speculators” on May 28, 2021, according to the register of the Office. The registration itself was made on January 4 this year.
Iliev has kept the “Speculators” brand for all possible activities and products, including all types of films.
However, the brand “Speculators” can also be used for emergency ladders, batteries, breathing apparatus for scuba diving, steam boilers, baby monitors, eyeglass chains, lightning rods, DNA chips, emoticons for mobile phones, eyeglass cases, cassette players, cosmographs , training robots, livestock bells, solar panels, telephones, newspapers, all kinds of programs, including television and radio, telecommunications services, performances, discos, music composition, cultural and entertainment services, competitions – all kinds of machines, scientific research, subscriptions, stationery, administrative services.
However, on March 31, a week before the film’s premiere, the CORUND-X company, owned by the film’s executive producer Nikolai Hristov, filed a request to cancel the registration. No decision has yet been taken on it, as the admissibility review by the Patent Office has not been completed. Hristov and Iliev are classmates from the French High School.
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