»Thirst is a film about the kind of love that comes upon us when we least expect it [and] forces us to remain human.«
– Svetla Tsotsorkova

On a hillside somewhere in the hinterland of Bulgaria, a family runs a laundry. The long-haired teenage son is forced by his father, a survivor of two heart attacks, to run 4,000 steps a day down into the small village. The mother, proud but overworked, takes in bed linen from the surrounding hotels. The white sheets may still wave in the wind, but the water supply in this arid mountain area is unstable and thus threatening the business. To solve the problem, a man and his 13-year-old daughter – a well digger and a water diviner – are called in. While searching for a fresh water source, the two families get to know one another. Soon it turns out that there is a need much stronger than that for water. It is the thirst for love that brings the family structure into disarray … from the bottom up.
Svetla Tsotsorkova combines chamber-drama elements with wide landscape shots and an artful use of light and shadow. The minimal dialogues uttered by her unidentified characters – only a stray dog has a name – reflect the vivid depiction of mutual observation. Suffused with light, the film’s widescreen photography contributes to the dreamy atmosphere. A gentle, lilting flute and guitar melody, sparingly employed, is the only music to this trance-like film about a family and its reconstitution. Thirst celebrated its world premiere at the San Sebastian International Film Festival in 2015 in the New Directors section.