2019 Edition
Nov 21 -24
official selection of 2019
ALL ACCESS PASS
Access to all the screenings and events of the festival including Opening Gala, Reception and Closing Party. $125
Kinga Dębska (b. 1969) is a Polish documentary and feature film director, a screenwriter, and novelist. Her films have brought her international recognition and prestigious awards at festivals in Poland and abroad. So far, Moje córki krowy (These Daughters of Mine) has achieved the most significant artistic and commercial success. Zabawa zabawa (Playing Hard) is her fourth feature film. Kinga Dębska is also a fiction writer; she has just published her second novel. She is a graduate of the Cultural Studies at the University of Warsaw, Camerimage Film School in Toruń, and the Film and TV School at the Academy of Performing Arts (FAMU), in the Prague, Czech Republic.
playing hard (Zabawa, zabawa)
feature by Kinga Debska
2018 | 88 min
The lives of three successful women: Magda, an excellent grad student with a terrific job, Teresa, a respected pediatric surgeon, and Dorota, a powerful prosecutor, are entwined by one common issue—a drinking problem. People around Magda turn a blind eye to her partying habits because of her professional accomplishments. Teresa’s drinking becomes uncontrollable, and she gets intoxicated even at her job as the head of the pediatric ward. On the other hand, Dorota, claiming immunity, easily eludes legal consequences that she would otherwise have faced after several under-the-influence episodes. Her husband, a well-known politician, effectively helps hush up her improprieties. Superbly directed by Kinga Dębska and brilliantly played by Maria Dębska, Dorota Kolak, and Agata Kulesza, the movie explores the widespread problem of alcohol addiction with realistic credibility on the one hand and sensitivity and emotional depth on the other, while not shying away from sarcasm or even humor.
Thursday · Nov 21 · 7pm · $50
(including Opening Gala at 5:30pm & Reception at 9pm)
Philippe Tłokiński was born in Bois- Bernard in France. In 2008 he graduated from École de la Comédie de Saint-Étienne. His career began with roles in French productions. He stole the hearts of Polish audience as Ignacy Makowski in the series “A Recipe for Life” and superintendent Orzechowski in “Belfer”. He also appeared in “Noc Walpurgii” by Marcin Bortkiewicz and “Volta” by Juliusz Machulski. The role of Jan Nowak- Jeziorański is his debut as a main character. He is soon to star in „Adventures of a Mathematician”.
the messenger (Kurier)
feature by Władysław Pasikowski
2019 | 114 min
His solitary mission was to be decisive in the fates of Poland and World War II. Tracked by all enemy intelligence, transferred from hotel Savoy to Żabno in the dead of night, he meets people who will change his life forever.
The new motion picture by Władysław Pasikowski, the director of the hits „Jack Strong” and „Pitbull: Last Dog”, is a sensational spy movie inspired by the secret mission of a famous messenger from Warsaw.
The incredible events from the life of Jan Nowak- Jeziorański are ideal screenplay material, which is confirmed by Pasikowski himself: “Our goal is to tell a spectacular story based on real life events that not even James Bond’s screenwriters could imagine. We want to tell this story in the most modern way possible, using the latest design ideas of action- adventure movies”- Władysław Pasikowski, director and screenplay author of "The Messenger".
Friday · Nov 22 · 5:30pm · $15
Łukasz Śródka is a Polish film director, screenplay writer, cinematographer, and producer, author of numerous short and feature documentaries, as well experimental films, which have received several film awards at festivals in Poland, Europe, North America, and Asia. He is a co-founder of the independent film studio, Camera Nera. Born in 1981 in Wrocław, Poland, Łukasz Śródka has lived and worked in four different countries and speaks several languages fluently, including Polish, English, Italian, and Spanish. He is a graduate of the University of Warsaw (Literary Studies) and Western Town College (MBA) in Toronto, Canada.
in absolute silence (W absolutnej ciszy)
Documentary by Łukasz Śródka
2018 | 65 min
While attending a national art symposium in 1971, a Polish artist, Konrad Jarodzki undertakes an unorthodox artistic venture: He grabs a few reels of white cotton tape, heads for a lignite strip mine nearby, and stretches a few kilometers of the tape in an attempt to bridle the space around him. A striking contrast between the rickety tape cutting through the air and the soulless and dominating landscape, so vivid in this project, represents the frailty of actions of an individual clashing with nature and a testament to the human determination to give meaning to the surrounding reality. This determination has accompanied Jarodzki in both professional and personal life: before and during WWII; in his decision to study painting against his family wishes; his career as an artist and university teacher; as well as his involvement in ani-Communism opposition. Based on a thoroughly crafted script and creatively filmed with careful attention to visual qualities, this biographical documentary shows a multi-faceted portrait of the artist, defying a clear-cut interpretation of his life, personality, and art.
Friday · Nov 22 · 8:30pm · $15
Jacek Borcuch was born on April 17, 1970 in Kwidzyn, Pomorskie, Poland. He is a director and actor, known for All That I Love (2009), Lasting (2013) and Tulips (2004).
He has been married to Ilona Ostrowska since 2004. They have one child.
DOLCE FINE GIORNATA (Slodki Koniec Dnia))
feature by Jacek Borcuch
2019 | 92 min
Maria Linde, a free-spirited, Jewish Polish Nobel Prize winner, lives
in Tuscany surrounded by warmth and chaos in her family’s villa. A
loving mother and grandmother, she also fosters a secret flirtation
with the much younger Egyptian man who runs a nearby seaside inn.
After a terrorist attack in Rome, Maria refuses to succumb to the
hysterical fear and anti-immigrant sentiment that quickly emerge,
deciding in her acceptance speech of a local honor to boldly decry
Europe’s eroding democracy—but she is unprepared for the public
and personal havoc her comments wreak.
Jacek Borcuch returns to the 2019 Sundance Film Festival’s
world dramatic competition for the third time (after 2010’s All That
I Love and 2013’s Lasting) with a visually sumptuous film. It
thoughtfully considers the role of art, politics, and family in all our
lives through one extraordinary woman’s tale, while also reflecting
on Europe’s history and its present.
Krystyna Janda
Saturday · Nov 23 · 5:30pm · $15
Kinga Dębska (b. 1969) is a Polish documentary and feature film director, a screenwriter, and novelist. Her films have brought her international recognition and prestigious awards at festivals in Poland and abroad. So far, Moje córki krowy (These Daughters of Mine) has achieved the most significant artistic and commercial success. Zabawa zabawa (Playing Hard) is her fourth feature film. Kinga Dębska is also a fiction writer; she has just published her second novel. She is a graduate of the Cultural Studies at the University of Warsaw, Camerimage Film School in Toruń, and the Film and TV School at the Academy of Performing Arts (FAMU), in the Prague, Czech Republic.
these daughters of mine (Moje Corki Krowy)
feature by Kinga Debska
2015 | 88 min
Two sisters are forced to put aside their differences when faced
with unexpected family circumstances. Marta (played by Agata
Kulesza) is a successful actress, a star of popular TV series, and a
single mother. In spite of her fame and money, she finds it difficult
to achieve balance in her personal life. Unlike her domineering
sister, Kasia (Gabriela Muskała)—a school teacher—is sensitive and
effusive. Her marriage is far from perfect—her husband is a loser,
always looking for a job. The sisters do not get on very well, but
when their mother suddenly falls seriously ill, they start to
cooperate to take care of the family, including their beloved but
despotic father. Marta and Kasia gradually become closer and
reclaim their lost relationship. This insightful and touching, yet
humorous at times, story about family relations has won numerous
awards at festivals in Poland and around the world.