The Gdynia Film Festival, Poland's traditional national film festival, is being held for the 49th time in the Baltic city of Gdynia. This is where the Polish film scene meets to exchange ideas and argue - so the extensive competition here becomes a much-discussed political issue every year: who is taking part, who is not, and why?
There is also a short film competition, the ‘Perspectives’ competition with films that realise their themes with innovative visual language, and numerous side sections. A total of 77 films were on the programme - ‘a well-founded overview of current Polish cinema, traditionally one of the strongest and most diverse film landscapes in Europe, where everything is possible between meditative arthouse cinema and gaudy blockbusters,’ says FFC programme director Bernd Buder, who is in Gdynia to research films.
Five new Polish films from Gdynia are making their way to this year's FilmFestival Cottbus: Damin Kocur's UNDER THE VOLCANO, the opening film of the Gdynia Film Festival, about a Ukrainian patchwork family stranded in the holiday paradise of Tenerife during the beginning of the Russian attack on their country (FFC competition), Justyna Mytnik's WET MONDAY, which, in the style of magical realism, tells the story of a young woman who returns to her small hometown on ‘Wet Monday’ at Easter, to take revenge on the man who raped her here a year ago (FFC Youth Film Competition), Maria Zbąska's IT'S NOT MY FILM, in which a couple in their thirties try to save their now somewhat tired relationship with a marathon hike along the Polish Baltic coast (FFC Spectrum) and Bartosz M.
Kowalski's NIGHT SILENCE, in which a retired actor has to deal with imaginary or real monsters in a retirement home (FFC Midnight Madness), and Xawery Żuławski's KULEJ. ALL THAT GLITTERS ISN'T GOLD, an unusual bio-pic about the Polish boxing pro Jerzy Kulej, who was the most successful Polish boxer in the socialist era, between sporting victories and party expectations, excursions into the world of beautiful appearances and the ambivalent relationship with his partner Helena, who insists on being more than just the wife of a star (FFC Spectrum).
You can see these and more films from our neighbouring country at the FilmFestival Cottbus from 5-10 November.
Update:
The Gdynia Film Festival, Poland's traditional national film festival, took place for the 49th time in the Baltic city of Gdynia.
This is where the Polish film scene meets to exchange ideas and argue - so the extensive competition here becomes a much-discussed political issue every year: who's in, who's out and why?
There is also a short film competition, the ‘Perspectives’ competition with films that realise their themes with innovative visual language, and numerous side sections. A total of 77 films were on the programme - ‘a well-founded overview of current Polish cinema, traditionally one of the strongest and most diverse film landscapes in Europe, where everything is possible between meditative arthouse cinema and gaudy blockbusters,’ says FFC programme director Bernd Buder, who is in Gdynia to research films.
Five new Polish films from Gdynia are making their way to this year's FilmFestival Cottbus:
Damin Kocur's UNDER THE VOLCANO, opening film of the Gdynia Film Festival, about a Ukrainian patchwork family stranded in the holiday paradise of Tenerife during the beginning of the Russian attack on their country (FFC competition),
Justyna Mytnik's WET MONDAY, which, in the style of magical realism, tells the story of a young woman who returns to her small hometown on ‘Wet Monday’ at Easter to take revenge on the man who raped her here a year ago (FFC Youth Film Competition).
Maria Zbąska's IT'S NOT MY FILM, in which a couple in their thirties try to save their now somewhat tired relationship with a marathon hike along the Polish Baltic coast (FFC Spectrum) and Bartosz M. Kowalski's NIGHT SILENCE, in which a retired actor has to deal with imaginary or real monsters in a retirement home (FFC Midnight Madness).
And Xawery Żuławski's KULEJ. ALL THAT GLITTERS ISN'T GOLD, an unusual bio-pic about the Polish boxing pro Jerzy Kulej, who was the most successful Polish boxer in the socialist era, between sporting victories and party expectations, excursions into the world of beautiful appearances and the ambivalent relationship with his partner Helena, who insists on being more than just the wife of a star (FFC Spectrum).
WET MONDAY (CICAE Youth Award), UNDER THE VOLCANO (Best Actress Debut to Sofiia Berezovka) and KULEJ - ALL THAT GLITTERS IS'NT GOLD (Best Make-up to Agnieszka Hodowan, ‘Golden Kangaroo’ Award of the Australian Film Distributors) won some of the prizes at the Gdynia Film Festival.
You can see these and more films from our neighbouring country at the FilmFestival Cottbus from 5-10 November.