Hotel Utopia

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Logline

In an abandoned hotel deep in the Bulgarian mountains, digital nomads search for a new home, investors are hoping for profit, and the last villager revels in days gone by, all driven by the longing for #happyland in a place shaped by a socialist past.

Synopsis

Deep in the Bulgarian mountains, at the foot of the Semkovo clearing, an abandoned hotel lies waiting. Impressive murals, velvet bedspreads, and empty liquor bottles hint at days long gone. What once served socialist officials as a holiday retreat and provided employment for the surrounding villages has now become a space for projected memories of lost community.

Matthias Zeitler, a marketing manager from Munich, dressed in traditional Bulgarian costume, leads a group of digital nomads through the empty corridors. He envisions pool parties, campfires, coworking, and #goodvibesonly. Together, as a group of digital nomads and investors, they want to buy the hotel and transform it into a new home for like-minded people. Anna and Marc, tired of years of nomadic life, long for the promised sense of belonging. Others, on the other hand, see the project as an investment opportunity, drawn by Bulgarian tax advantages.

Johnny, the former caretaker, stands on his veranda, observing the sudden activity in the hotel. Over raki and card games, his friends share their fears of exploitation and displacement, while he quietly hopes for friendly relations. It's a long-term exploration of the yearning for utopias with the lingering shadows of a communist past.

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