Przemysław Wojcieszek wrote the script for Doskonałe popołudnie / The Perfect Afternoon thinking Andrzej Wajda would direct it - as his next film about modern-day problems after Panna Nikt / Miss Nobody. Wajda turned it down, so the scriptwriter and director (who is also a theatre director) decided to make it himself.
Doskonałe popołudnie / The Perfect Afternoon is "a look at today's Poland through the eyes of 50-year-olds and very young people, 20-year-olds. It is a critical look, but also not devoid of sympathy for the protagonists", as Wojcieszek said.The film tells the story of Mikołaj, his girlfriend Anna and his business partner Krzysiek, who run a small publishing business in the suburbs of Gliwice. Anna and Mikołaj's wedding is coming up. The couple have no time to prepare - their latest book release was a complete flop. Now they are looking for a text that would bring them commercial success. They are followed in their preparations by a friend shooting a film about them.
"Such energy and courage only happens once in a lifetime - when you are twenty-something, that's why I wanted to portray it", the director says about his characters.
At this time, Maria, Mikołaj's mother who lives in Warsaw, receives a visit from her ex-husband from Wrocław, whom Maria hasn't seen for 12 years. He asks that they go together to Gliwice to their son's wedding. Maria agrees.
This is a successful attempt at commenting on the situation in Poland - with well-led actors, a script that intelligently combines the outlooks of two generations, but also with an ending and ultimate message of hopefulness. It is a story told unaffectedly, with characters and problems outlined simply as always. This is not cinema of metaphors or oblique meanings. Wojcieszek draws from reality directly but, as he says, "I see this country in a very positive light". That is a rare quality among artists of the young generation.
- Doskonałe popołudnie / The Perfect Afternoon, Poland, 2005. Directed by Przemysław Wojcieszek, screenplay by Przemysław Wojcieszek, Director of photography: Jolanta Dylewska, Production design by Andrzej Płocki, Andrzej Rafał Waltenberger, Maria Duffek, costume design by: Zuzanna Winiarska, music by Radosław Łukasiewicz, Pustki, Film Editor: Andrzej Bressa. Featuring: Michał Czernecki (Mikołaj Mielczarek), Magdalena Popławska (Anna Knysok, narzeczona Mikołaja), Gosia (Małgorzata) Dobrowolska (Maria Mielczarek, Mikołaj's mother), Jerzy Stuhr (Andrzej Mielczarek, Mikołaj's father), Dorota Kamińska (Barbara Knysok, Anna's mother), Sławomir Orzechowski (Henryk Knysok, Anna's father), Krzysztof Czeczot (Krzysiek, Mikołaj's business partner), Anita Poddębniak (Marta), Krzysztof Dracz (Marek, Maria's partner). Produced by Telewizja Polska - Agencja Filmowa, Agencja Produkcji Filmowej. Duration: 90 min. Premiering on November 17, 2006. Cinema premiere: April 20, 2007.
Film awards:
- 2005 Prize of the Association of Foreign Organizers of Polish Festivals and the Mayor of Warsaw's Award for Przemysław Wojcieszek at the Polish Film Festival in Gdynia; "Polityka's Passport" for Przemysław Wojcieszek for the film Doskonałe popoludnie / The Perfect Afternoon;
- 2006 Youth Jury Award for Przemysław Wojcieszek at the Verona Love Screens Film Festival; Krzysztof Kieślowski Memorial Award "Beyond Borders" for Przemysław Wojcieszek at the New York Polish Film Festival.
Author: Joanna PawluśkiewiczDecember 2006