Hong Kong 01.09-20.09.2013
Retrospective of films by Wojciech Jerzy Has, accompanied by screenings of works by young Polish filmmakers, was held in Hong Kong. This almost two-month program, entitled "Has - Beyond the Master", was organized jointly by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute and the Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF).
Wojciech Jerzy Has, prominent film director, screenwriter and producer, was awarded numerous film awards. Due to his unique artistic language he is often referred to as "a visionary of Polish cinema". In every film he has created his own world, the adventures of his protagonists were always of secondary importance compared to experience of the visual environment in which the action takes place.
Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF), managed by the HKIFF Society, is one of the oldest and most prestigious film festivals in Asia. Films presented as part of the review "Has - Beyond the Master" were screened in agnès b. CINEMA in Hong Kong Arts Center. The retrospective was an excellent opportunity to make Polish cinema present in Hong Kong in a sustainable and effective way.
The program „HAS - Beyond the Master" consists of three parts:
1. The Master
Retrospective of five films directed by W. J. Has: Rekopis znaleziony w Saragossie / The Saragossa Manuscript - adaptation of a novel by explorer Jan Potocki set during the Napoleonic Wars, Sanatorium pod klepsydra / The Hourglass Sanatorium based on the short story by Bruno Schulz and three intimate psychological dramas: Petla / The Noose, Jak byc kochana / How to Be Loved, Pozegnania / Farewells.
2. Learning from the Master
Slady / Traces - documentary about W.J. Has by Robert Glinski, in which the director is portreyed by other artists, talking about their creative meetings with the Master.
3. Beyond the Master
Films directed by Has's students and filmmakers inspired by his work:
- Malgorzata Szumowska Ono / Stranger - a film about a young woman and her unwanted pregnancy
- Slawomir Fabicki Miłosc / Loving - a study of breakdown of a happy marriage
- Adrian Panek Daas - a story of Jakub Frank, an 18th century Jewish messiah
- Borys Lankosz Rewers / Reverse - a black comedy about three generations of women
Date: 1st of September - 20th of October, 2013
Venue: agnès b. CINEMA, Hong Kong Arts Center, 2 Harbour Rd, Wan Chai, Hong Kong
Organizers: Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, Adam Mickiewicz Institute
Partner: National Film Archive