Discoveries from Poland World Cinema

A pastiche of old TV programmes explaining science to the general public and an ironic commentary on peculiarities that have pervaded contemporary TV programmes. In his original programme Dr Character, modelled on a person from the opening credits of A Billion in Mind, a game show (which, by the way, was made by Piotr Dumata many years ago), presents extraordinary scientists, original inventors and a selection of curiosities. Jerzy, Ptazewski, a doyen of the Polish film critics, gave his voice to the character.

The film follows a few people in their twenties experiencing love-Adrian, Jacus, Wiesia, The Crystal Girl and Wasyl. Adrian is in his final year studying philosophy. During a lecture on the nature of love, he notices Magda, a socially engaged journalist who has her own radio talk-show. They start dating. Jacus, who shares a dorm room with Adrian, is hopelessly in love with Wasyl. Unable to deal with his unrequited love, Jacus is driven to psychosis. Adrian’s sister Wiesia is soon to be married to Szymon. They are looking for a flat together. When Adrian drops by for a visit, he realizes that Szymon is physically abusing his sister. Wiesia, however, is in denial.

The man finds a banknote. With the line it is drawn. , he tries to sketch a house. It turns out that there is not enough of it, instead there is only enough for one sock.

A documentary about the operation of 'schools of seduction' and the techniques taught there.

A pair of Poles deported to Siberia are taken to the army formed by General Anders and along the battle trail.

The backstage of the Polish National Opera in Warsaw. Craftspeople from workshops and wardrobe are preparing costumes and set design for the upcoming premiere of one of the most important shows of the season. The film sheds light on the invisible work of dozens of people who are usually overshadowed by the artists performing on stage.

The first Polish film about jazz and, at the same time, an unusual documentary record of a concert of two legendary music bands: Hot Club Melomani and The Komeda Sextet.

The horse and the knight, conjured by the Wizard Bartodziej, are introduced by him to the wooden kingdom visible in a painting. To get the hand of the most beautiful of the royal daughters, the knight must kill the menacing dragon.

Eliza, an elderly woman with Alzheimer's, lives in a house filled with reminder notes and family photos. She records daily videos and revisits old diaries and tapes to preserve her sense of self. As her memories slowly return in fragments, she discovers her own forgotten diary and realizes she may have lost more than just her memories.

A stop-motion animated film created by a Ukrainian artist living in Poland. Based on her own picture book of the same title, it addresses the difficult theme of depression in the family, told from a child’s perspective. The protagonists are a child and a mother struggling with depression. The child notices changes in the mother’s behavior, tries to understand what is happening, looks for ways to help, and at times takes on responsibility.

The protagonist of the film is Tomasz Machciński, a man with a hundred faces, or rather with one face, but one that is both a material and a work of art. Machciński photographs himself disguised as famous people.

"Samertajm" is Abelard Giza's sixth solo program. He had the opportunity to tour with it from September 2022 to March 2024. The recording available for viewing is a performance captured at Warsaw's 'Stodoła' club in June 2023.

An intimate take on the emotions related to awaiting a baby and the grief after the infant’s loss. The pain accompanying the parents was depicted by means of visual symbols and metaphors. An economical, surreal story about a personal tragedy which, at the same time, is a remarkably beautiful observation of the love between two people who are trying to overcome a trauma together.

In 1939 Janusz Klarner reaches the Nanda Devi East peak in the Himalayas. Everything that happened later seems to have been a consequence of this act. Breaking of taboos cannot be forgotten in a country that is being reborn in the new communist order.

A group of friends get lost on a trip in the woods and accidentally come across an ancient ceremony (Kupala Night). Horror with themes of Slavic demonology.

A large still-life painting hung on the wall above Lilka Elbaum's childhood bed in Lodz, Poland. It was the first thing she saw when she woke up, and the last thing she saw before she fell asleep.

The colage presents in a blaze of colours the horse from the famous Shakespearean quote uttered by Richard the Third.

Pawel and Wawel gathers unique images and sounds from a journey through Iceland that position themselves between documentary gesture and performative strategy. The starting point and anchor of this trans-genre diary film, road movie, documentary film project, is the film festival initiated by Krzystof Kaczmarek “Wha's the difference between Pawel and Wawel,” which more or less unsuccessfully tours the island with Polish classics.

Kuba returns from rehab for Christmas. His parents are surprised by his presence, and his younger brother makes no secret of his hostility. Resentment and grievances persist even as the family members gather for a festive dinner and share the Christmas wafer.

Aleksander Fredro’s classic fairy tale about a neighborhood dispute.

In February 1956, after several months of construction, the largest rolling mill in Poland, the rolling mill of the Lenin Smelter, started to operate. The viewers could see the final preparations and the launch of the machine.

Russian Federation Duma deputy Omar O. Begov, when asked if Stalin can be put on the same level as Hitler, is offended. He says: Poland should be grateful to Stalin that it was separated from other countries, that it became independent. Truman, Churchill and others wanted to divide her like Germany. Stalin insisted that the Republic of Poland remain independent. Most Russians think similarly - if they think about it at all. Some, however, like historians from the Memorial Association, are uncovering the horrifying truth about the methodical, multi-stage extermination of Poles that began on Stalin's orders in 1934.

Janina lives with her oldest daughter Dana in a village, idyllically nestled between mountains and dense forests in southwestern Poland. At the age of 92, Janina recalls her past more vividly than she ever has. The film takes us on a journey into commitment, personal loss, resilience, and the importance of empathy in the face of the darkest moments in history.

A beautifully illustrated story of a contemporary village and its unconventional dwellers who are of different age but have one thing in common – their strong attachment to folk culture. In this film, music is as important as images, since it accompanies the protagonists during key events in their lives.

According to members of the Darwin Film Group, Jesus arrives in heaven after his crucifixion. There he meets his father, God, who is clearly not pleased with his son's arrival. As it turns out, the words of Scripture do not particularly convey what plans the Lord had for Jesus.

Lost film by Kazimierz Prószyński. The film presented about street traffic in front of Mickiewicz’s monument in Warsaw.

”Rytual” is a vividly illustrated record of the character's struggle with everyday activities. A sequence of overlapping interactions between a human and a dog often assumes a grotesque, comical form of intolerable compulsions. The short film raises a timid question about the complexity - or should we say imperfections - of human nature. Behaviors, gestures and habits of both the human and his dog show a far-reaching resemblance, while their mutual relationship is an unending cycle of everyday rituals. The character, entangled in the series of recurring events, unexpectedly discovers the terrifying animality of his own nature. This disturbing metamorphosis is interrupted by a sudden awakening. But was it merely a dream?

A documentary depicting the activities of Śmierć Kliniczna, one of the most famous rock bands of the 1980s in Poland.

The evil wolf Kid kidnaps Hector the Rat, wanting to extract from him the secret of growing golden tulips. Colargol the Bear and Raven set off to help their friend. They are aided by a magical suitcase. Their journey takes them through the Netherlands, America, Australia, Siberia, Africa, and ends in their home forest.

A mother and her children prepare to return home from a seaside holiday. For the family, it’s a moment of farewell not only to the summer days but also to the life they have known. For little Mati, these are the final days of his carefree childhood.

The starting point for the creation of the film was the recording of movement interactions between two people. The tools of narration are human bodies. Each movement provokes a response from the other party. In this way I spin a tale of attraction and repulsion and changing dynamics. It’s a record of authentic gestures, which makes the performance spontaneous and reactive.

A poetic, last look at an old Warsaw tenement house scheduled for demolition.

Animated short film

The manufacture of a new weapon in the pre-WWI naval arms race.

A young married couple is torn apart by WW1. When the news comes of her husband's death, Wanda marries another man, not knowing that her loved one is somewhere deep in the east.

This is a story about the complex relationship between a mother and her terminally ill teenage daughter. The girl is immersed in the fictional world of her drawings and plays Juliet on stage, but is absolutely helpless in real life. They live together in a tiny apartment on the outskirts of the megapolis. And one day a man appears in their life.

Two centuries after his death, Frédéric Chopin returns to Warsaw as a spectre summoned by his own music. In the concert hall, he listens to the performance of his own works, and every note triggers successive layers of memory – of lost love, artistic triumphs and a lonely death far from his homeland.

“Curato Don Wojtyła a Niegowic” is a gentle biographical drama about young Karol Wojtyła’s initial assignment as a village priest in Niegowić. Through humble and compassionate support for the post-war community, he discovers the pastoral approach that will define his future as Pope John Paul II.

An interventionist documentary describing the damage done by mining wells to historic landmarks in Bytom.

A film director’s mother is losing her eyesight. She visits her son and his girlfriend. Seeking relief by the sea, they all find peace in untamed nature, create a new, unspoken language, and turn these final moments into a farewell to light.

In a grimy musclehead gym, no one suspects that, at night, one of the trainers transforms into the fierce drag queen Antaria. The sudden appearance of an intruder disrupts the semblance of balance between the two worlds.

Jola lives in Podlasie, near the border with Belarus. Her son Marek works in the Border Guard and combs the forests looking for illegal immigrants. Jola is a taxi driver and does not want to interfere, but one day a car breakdown will force her to confront her own beliefs.

The familiar chicken egg conceals the profound mystery of life.

Deep and serious student film.

One of the studies showing the life of foreign students in Polish People`s Republic who enter into relationships with polish women. The author presents the everyday life of black man - his family relationships and work.

A school etude referring to a painting motif about the farewell of lovers. He, the uhlan, must ride away on his horse into the blue distance, and she, the girl in a flower wreath, cannot come to terms with it.

"Duel" describes the clash of two athletes, shot putters David Davis and Alfred Sosgórnik.

The wire girl no longer wants to be of wire, so she embarks on a journey to find a solution to her problem.