The bTV workplace interior in Sofia, completed in 2026 and designed by IPA - Architecture and more, transforms a series of former storage and service spaces into an active working environment for one of Bulgaria’s largest television broadcasters. The project brings together editorial work, guest reception, preparation, informal interaction, and filming within a single interior shaped around the specific routines of television production.
Before the renovation, the spaces were used primarily for storing studio props and supporting production activities. The new design gives these previously secondary areas a new role within bTV’s daily operations. Rather than approaching the project as a conventional office interior, the layout responds to a workplace in which journalists, production teams, guests, and on-camera activities continuously overlap.
The program includes a reception area, lobby, waiting zones, new makeup rooms, informal meeting spaces, a lounge with a kitchen, areas for interviews and short-form filming, an acoustically separated children’s area, and editorial workspaces. The central design challenge was to connect these functions while allowing each to meet different requirements for circulation, privacy, concentration, preparation, and public interaction.
The reception area organizes movement between the entrance, makeup rooms, television studios, and workspaces. It serves as both a point of orientation and the first interior encountered by guests and participants arriving for different television formats. A waiting area in front of the makeup rooms supports the sequence of preparation before a studio appearance, interview, or shoot. Through everyday use, the same space has also developed an additional role as an informal setting where guests frequently stop for photographs.
Within the lobby, a yellow cabinet is used to organize and store guest and participant cards. Its strong color gives the space a clear visual focus while responding to a practical production need. Functional elements are therefore allowed to contribute directly to the identity of the interior rather than being treated as separate from its visual language.
Existing circulation areas are also reconsidered as active spaces. A former corridor is furnished for brief meetings and informal conversation, turning an area previously dedicated only to movement into a place for spontaneous exchange. Nearby, a separate quiet area provides an alternative setting for meetings that require greater privacy and concentration.
The lounge and kitchen form one of the most flexible parts of the project. During the working day, they are used for meals, breaks, and informal meetings. The same space also functions as a setting for interviews, presentations, and short profile videos. The interior therefore has to perform equally well as an everyday workplace and as a visual environment for television production.
This overlap between work and filming is repeated throughout the project. Spaces are not assigned a single fixed function where greater flexibility can support bTV’s daily operations. The corridor becomes a place for conversation, the waiting area becomes an informal photo setting, and the kitchen becomes a filming location. Adaptability is therefore embedded in the way the spaces are used rather than expressed only through movable elements or formal gestures.
An acoustically separated children’s area is positioned directly next to the workspaces. It remains visually connected to the office while limiting sound transfer, allowing the space to remain integrated into the working environment without disturbing concentration in adjacent areas.
At the center of the main workspace, a large table is used for morning editorial meetings. Journalists gather there at the beginning of the day to discuss key topics, assignments, and priorities for upcoming broadcasts. The table acts as a shared point around which the editorial process begins and the working day is coordinated.
The project is shaped by the operational rhythm of television production rather than by a generic workplace model. Guest arrival, preparation, editorial discussion, informal exchange, filming, focused work, and social activity are brought together within a connected sequence of spaces, each with a defined role but with the capacity to support more than one use.
By transforming former storage and service areas into an active extension of bTV’s workplace, the project demonstrates how existing interior space can be reprogrammed around the real routines of its users. The result is a flexible media environment in which workplace, production, and guest-facing functions coexist within one coherent interior.
