Maxim Gorky used to say that "you need to write for children just as you do for adults, but better". This does not sound so noble, however, when translated into the practical language of the political system that Gorky himself legitimized; communist ideology assumed that the purpose of children's art was not to help educate young generations, but rather to indoctrinate them. Luckily, however, Polish artists managed to successfully resist political pressure and circumvent the demands of socialist realism, supported by the educational and artistic activity of Janusz Korczak. Art for children, including children's films, became a hallmark of Polish culture, and artists like Janusz Nasfeter, Maria Kaniewska, Stanisław Jędryka, Anna Sokołowska and Krzysztof Gradowski made films targeted at children as well as adults. These films were enjoyed by audiences around the world, since they played well with young viewers, stimulated the imagination and were both psychologically credible and free from aggressive didactics. Animation artists also created dozens of cartoons, featuring such characters as Bolek and Lolek, Reksio the Doggie, Uszatek the Bear and Filemon the Cat. The sheer number of Polish artworks for children – particularly films – remains impressive, as do this art's educational and aesthetic qualities.
State funding for children's art shrunk dramatically after the political system changed in 1989, resulting in a crisis for the artists involved. The flood of cheap, attractive television programmes from the West, many of which had never before been seen in Poland despite their global popularity, made it difficult for home-grown art for children to develop. However, there have been signs of a revival. In 1984 the Children's Art Centre opened in Poznań, bringing together creations from the local Children's Art Biennials. Poznań is also home to Andrzej Maleszka, director of what are currently the most unique films being produced for young audiences.
Maleszka graduated from the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań with a master's degree in Polish Studies. Although he was involved with the student-run "Nurt" theatre during his studies, there was nothing in his early career to indicate that he would one day come to direct magical, fairy-tale productions which would explain the world to children through common language (or as Maleszka would say, "home language").
"This is a stereotypical and banal sort of language, which hardly ever helps one to communicate", said Maleszka. "Children respond to this blah-blah very well – they imitate and parody it. I believe that you need to lay bare this language and make fun of it. But above all, you need to seek out the meaning beneath it". (Stefan Drajewski, "Magiczny poznaniak", Polska Głos Wielkopolski, January 8th, 2009)
Ballada o Kasi i drzewie (TV, 1984) was Maleszka's first attempt to establish direct contact with young viewers, without going above children's heads to communicate with adults. This was followed by the acclaimed Wielkoludy, Burza w Teatrze Gogo, Mechaniczna Magdalena, Maszyna zmian and Mama-Nic, all of which are still being performed in theatres and occasionally appear on television. Maleszka soon grew into a recognized figure in the art world, and in 1988 he received the Stanisław Wyspiański Award for young and original artists.
What makes Maleszka's work so original? This is how he himself describes his artistic achievements:
"My films are fairytales about common things: about longing (especially a child's longing), and about the profound need for the miraculous that is natural for every child – and for many mature people as well. It does not mean being out of touch with the real world. It is more of an attempt to completing the incomplete picture that our senses give us. My films are also about the relationship between the little person and the big world, about still having a chance even when faced with a huge, anonymous threat. This is what allows me to connect with audiences in various countries in a very natural way. I also believe that as children, we experience the world in a similar way no matter where we are raised. I combine everyday, real events with miracles because this is how children experience the world. Still, I make films, so they must possess the elements that make films powerful: strong emotions and compelling characters, and the surprise and suspense that makes as wait with bated breath for the next scene. This game of expectation and surprise is what I like best in this genre of cinema. Children want the story to contain something familiar, because this makes them feel safe; but they also want to be surprised time and time again. I am constantly breaking apart the mirror that reflects the world, and gluing it back together". (Maleszka in an interview with Jakub Socha for the magazine "Kino" (4/2008))
Maleszka has translated his artistic philosophy into 30 films, most of them no longer than a dozen minutes, each of which forms a separate, inclusive entity that fits a child's perceptions. Their finite structure makes it possible to construct a self-contained vision of the world using young actors who are directed with confidence. The ability to work with children is crucial for such projects and Maleszka succeeds in extracting genuine emotions and mature reactions from his cast, probably because he treats them seriously and involves them in the creative process. Having once been the manager of a children's theatre, Maleszka visits schools to observe and select his actors. He believes that traditional casting overlooks individuals who live far from big cities, and so he makes an effort to avoid it. Once he has selected his actors, he changes the screenplay to adapt it to their personalities and leads them in acting exercises to develop their creativity. Some of his young actors catch the bug and choose to become professional thespians, such as Katarzyna Bujakiewicz, who started her acting career with Maleszka at the age of six, appeared regularly in his films and programmes for seven years and later came back to work with him as a trained actress.
Maleszka is sometimes referred to as Peter Pan, but although the term is endearing, he does not like it. Perhaps this stems from the fact that J.M. Barry's character is an expression of the futile longing to remain a child for ever, while Maleszka does not approve of adults pretending to be children. He prefers to be seen as a children's guide to the world of both children and adults, one who knows the world's various nooks and crannies while also being enlightening, compassionate and inspirational for the audiences of his increasingly mature projects. Maleszka feels like an artist alone, almost like a last Mohican defending young audiences from the flood of media pulp processed and formatted by global corporations. Yet he also knows that his art is needed. Proof of this came in 2007 when he won an Emmy Award for his series Magiczne drzewo / The Magic Tree.
"The leitmotif of the series is the story of the Wondrous Tree, out of which hundreds of ordinary objects are made", explains Maleszka in an interview with the magazine "Kino". "Each of them retains a particle of the tree's magic power, which is passed on to ordinary people. This is the mythical idea of dispersed might. The film is pervaded by the belief that something miraculous will happen in everybody's life."
The Emmy Award, the "Oscar of TV", crowns Maleszka's artistic career and closes a certain chapter of his work. But it opens a new one at the same time, for Maleszka is now making a feature film about the Magic Tree. Why change the medium? Why make his first film for the cinema? As Maleszka explains,
"I don't like to talk about films as though they had some job to do. I believe that the key thing is to open yourself to empathy. People who can imagine what others feel are usually good people. So if the cinema has got a job, it is to stimulate the imagination".
Awards:
- 1988 - Stanisław Wyspiański Award for Achievement in Promoting Theatre and for Theatrical Projects for Young Audiences
- 1992 - Chairman of the Radio and Television Committee's Award for Children's and Youth Programmes
- 1998 - Srebrny Słoń / Silver Elephant for Art for Children at the 3rd Festival of Children's and Youth Films in Warsaw
- 2004 - Platynowe Koziołki / Platinum Goats - Special Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Children's and Youth Film Category at the 22nd International "Ale Kino!" Young Audiences Film Festival in Poznań
- 2008 - City of Poznań Art Award
Theatre projects:
- 1986 - Wielkoludy (writer and director, Teatr Nowy in Poznań). Awards: Special mention for a children's production at the 26th Festival of Polish Contemporary Playwriting in Wrocław, 1987; Wielkopolski Literary Fund Award for Drama, 1988
- 1988 - Burza w Teatrze Gogo (writer and director, Teatr Nowy in Poznań)
- 1990 - Maszyna zmian (writer and director, Teatr Nowy in Poznań)
- 1991 - Mama-Nic (writer and director, Teatr Nowy in Poznań)
- 1999 - Jasiek (writer and director). Awards: Wrocław Television Award and Journalists' Award at the Wrocław WROSTJA Meetings of One Actor and Small Forms Theatres, 1999
Filmography (director and writer):
- 1984 - Ballada o Kasi i drzewie{C} (TV)
- 1986 - Wielkoludy {C} (TV)
- 1989 - Mechaniczna Magdalena {C} (TV)
- 1990 - Ofelia na wakacjach {C} (TV). Grand Prix at the Poznań Children's Film Festival, 1992
- 1991 - Wieża Babel (TV)
- 1993 - Jacek (TV series). Awards: Silver Medal at the New York Television Festival, 1994; Marcinek - Mention of the Children's Jury at the Children's Film Competition in Poznań, 1994; Jury Award at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival (episode "Dłonie"{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}), 1994; Poznańskie Koziołki / Poznań Goats in the Independent Cinema Category at the Poznań Children's Film Competition (episode "Wyścig"), 1994
- 1993 - Jakub (TV). Children's Jury Award at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival, 1994
- 1993-95 - Kociak / Kitten (TV). Award at the Poznań Children's Film Festival, 1996
- 1994 - Mama Nic{C} (TV series)
- 1995 - Maszyna zmian {C} (TV series)
- 1996 - Maszyna zmian - Nowe przygody (TV series). Awards: Screenplay Award at the Zlata Praha International Film Festival, 1997; Srebrne Koziołki / Silver Goats Adult Jury Award at the 15th Poznań International Children's Film Festival, 1997; Gold Medal at the Television Festival in New York (episode "TeleJulia"), 1997; nominated for the International Emmy Award 1997; Children's Jury Marcin Award at the 15th Poznań International Children's Film Festival, 1997; Grand Prix of the Munich International Prix Jeunesse Festival, 1998
- 1998 - Polowanie (TV)
- 1998 - Sto minut wakacji (TV). Awards: Srebrne Koziołki / Silver Goats at the Poznań Ale Kino! Children's Film Festival, 2000
- 1999 - Sto minut wakacji (TV series)
- 2000 - Koniec świata u Nowaków / The End of the World at the Nowaks (TV)
- 2003-06 - Magiczne drzewo / The Magic Tree (TV series). Awards: International Emmy Award 2007; Grand Prize of the 7-11 Children's Film Competition ("Drewniany pies" / "The Wooden Dog" episode); Children's Jury Award and Audience Award at the Munich Prix Jeunesse International Television Film Festival, 2004; Children's Jury Award at the Montevideo International Children's Film Festival, 2004; Rockie Award in the Children's Programmes Category at the Banff World Television Festival, 2005; Grand Prix at the Bratislava International Film Festival, 2005; Bronze Pharaoh and Children's Jury Award at the Cairo International Children's Film Festival, 2005; Grand Prize and Children's Jury Award at the Munich International Prix Jeunesse Television Film Festival ("Berło" / "The Sceptre" episode), 2006; Grand Prix at Schwinge Children's Film Festival ("Bracia" / "Brothers" episode), 2006; Grand Prix at the Golden Chest International Television Festival in Plovdiv, 2006; Grand Prize at the Chemnitz Children's and Youth Film Festival, 2006; Srebrny Hugo / Silver Hugo in the Television Film Category at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival ("Pożeracze książek" / "Devourers of Books" episode), 2007; Munich Prix Jeunesse International Television Film Festival Award, 2008
- 2008 - Das Morhus-Geheimnis (writer only)
- 2009 - Magiczne drzewo / The Magic Tree (cinema film)
Author: Konrad J. Zarębski, June 2009