Followed by a Q&A with director Biliana Grozdanova.

Original Title: Eastern Western

Length: 108 min
Film Category: Feature Narrative
New York Premiere

Cast & Credits

Director: Biliana & Marina Grozdanova
Cinematography: Cameron Wheeless
Editing: Cameron Wheeless
Production Company: El Jinete Films

Film Synopsis:

Eastern Western is a story of a son raised by two fathers, one from the European East and one from the American West, set on the cusp of the 20th century. Deep in the mountains of the American frontier, Igor, an immigrant and recent widower, struggles to raise his two-year-old son in the harshness of winter. When Duncan, an American horse rancher and friendly acquaintance, decides to move his horse-breeding business and family to California, Igor and his son join the wagon train headed West. After a series of encounters with both friend and foe, Duncan is left with a decision that will affect the family's future forever.

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Directors' Biography

Biliana and Marina Grozdanova are Bulgarian-born, Brooklyn-based independent filmmakers. In 2012 they founded their production company, El Jinete Films, and have been co-directing as sisters ever since. They premiered their debut feature documentary "The Last Kamikazis of Heavy Metal" at the 2014 New Orleans Film Festival. Eastern Western is the Grozdanova Sisters' first narrative feature, awarded the Big Sky Film Grant in 2024. It premiered at the Mill Valley Film Festival in 2024 and has screened at a dozen international film festivals, picking up awards including Best Cinematography, Best Feature, and the Carlo Simi Award for Technical-Artistic Contribution to the Western Genre (Almería Western Film Festival 2025).