The 29th "Golden Rose" took place in 2010 and was notable for the start of the protests against the drastic cuts in public funding and the refusal of awarded artists to publicly receive their prizes.

"2011 marks 50 years from the foundation of the "Golden Rose" in 1961 and 20 years from the foundation of the NFC," said acting Director Irina Kanousheva. She added that because of these anniversaries the 30th edition of the festival could not wait until 2012 and had to be held this year. "This festival is naturally linked to filmmaking and we are trying to restore its normal rhythm so that people can work safely. The institution is making considerable efforts for the festival budget not to exceed €100,000."

The anniversary edition of the "Golden Rose" will include two competitions, one for features and one for short films with 12 and 18 titles in each. Four features were supported by the NFC, one by the NFC and the public broadcaster BNT (www.bnt.bg) and one by BNT. The other six films were made without national support. "It turned out that when one has something to say, he finds a way to do it. Of course, public support has a crucial role in maintaining the pace and quality of filmmaking," Kanousheva said.

The National Film Centre organizes the "Golden Rose" in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture (mc.government.bg), the Varna Municipality (www.varna.bg), the Varna Festival and Congress Centre (www.fccvarna.bg) and in partnership with the Bulgarian National Television and the Bulgarian National Film Archive (www.bnf.bg).