"Our aim is to tell visually striking and meaningful stories"

Studio Zmei was founded in Sofia, Bulgaria, in 2015. Their goal is to develop the local animation industry by working on major international projects and applying the experience they've gain to their own stories and original productions.

They started with “The Golden Apple” project – the first animated series based on Balkan folklore. After a successful crowd-funding campaign, the series became a French-Bulgarian co-production with the support of the French producer Dandelooo and is currently in negotiations for its first season.

Since its inception in 2015, Studio Zmei has been steadily growing. Their teams are currently producing more than 200 minutes of high-quality animated content per year, available on some of the biggest platforms and TV channels worldwide.


Studio Projects:

Mila and Marko:
Mila and Marko is an original animated series that tells the story of ten-year-old Mila who is shocked when her parents decide to move from Paris to their original home in the far-away town of Gabrovo, Bulgaria! Luckily for her, she manages to summon the spirit of the ancient Balkan hero Marko to help her out in her new home.

Legend of the First Kuker Warrior:
In a fantastic world, ravaged by the forces of darkness, the brave blacksmith Anton ventures beyond the walls of his village in search for help. Within the dark forests full of menacing spirits and terrifying creatures he meets the Samodivas – beautiful magical entities that give him a terrible, yet wonderful gift. The maddening knowledge they share with Anton is about to change the fate of his small village forever.

Unicorn: Warriors Eternal:
Genndy Tartakovsky’s new animated series tells the story of a team of ancestral heroes charged with the mission of protecting the world from an ominous force and their awakening comes all too soon… Working with Studio La Cachette in France, Studio Zmei handled more than 173 minutes of the animation assist, line, and color, as well as a small part of the rough animation, for all 10 episodes. We worked in TVPaint software. The show is the first production which benefited from the new Bulgarian cash rebate system.

Learn More about The Studio Website