Still from Flying Blind by Katarzyna Klimkiewicz, photo by: Alter Ego Pictures.
The British debut of a Polish film director, a raw psychological drama, a documentary about a retired Don Juan, and an ironic tale about family secrets – the winners of the 32nd Debut Film Festival in Koszalin have been announced.
This year’s edition of the Koszalin Debut Film Festival, The Young and Cinema, has shown that Polish cinema is gradually being invaded by the generation of young female filmmakers with strong character and distinctive styles. Women received the majority of the festival awards. The 32nd Festival The Young and Cinema has also proven that the power of Polish cinema lays in short film productions – though the general level appeared lower in the main competition than in previous years, one could find worthwhile positions among the documentaries, short subjects and animations.
Best Film - Flying Blind
Katarzyna Klimkiewicz received the grand Festival award for the Best Feature Film Debut, The Great Jantar 2013, and a check for 20,000 złoty (around 5,000 euro), for her film Flying Blind, which she made in the U.K.
It is a political thriller, based on a story of an affair between a female engineer involved in the construction of unmanned aerial vehicles and a man from Algeria who is suspected of having connections with terrorists.
Klimkiewicz, who had won the prize for Best Short Film Director at the Festival for her film Hanoi-Warszawa, has this year also received the Stanisław Różewicz Jantar 2013 Award for directing, and the Journalists‘ Award.
The Jantar 2013 Award for Best Screenplay and a 10,000 złoty (around 2,500 euro) check went to Jerzy Kowynia for Kamczatka. This feature debut by the experienced documentary filmmaker had caused a divide among the Koszalin audience.
Kamczatka tells a story of Stach – a man serving a prison sentence of several years. After the suicide of his mother, he receives a permit to attend the funeral. At home, he meets his long-unseen father and Marta, his sister, and her boyfriend. During one long conversation, very old family secrets will surface, and the audience will discover the truth about an incestuous affair that Stach and his sister had long ago.
Rafał Pawłowski writes in his review for the website Portal Filmowy:
The feature debut of the filmmaker Jerzy Kowynia is an attempt (recently rare within Polish cinema) at a psychological drama. Even if unsuccessful, it deserves attention due to Tomasz Sobczak’s wonderful role.
The jury also recognized outstanding roles in Kamczatka. Tomasz Sobczak and Edyta Torhan received the Jantar 2013 award for Best Male and Best Female Role, respectively.
Four Jantar 2013 prizes were given to Stacja Warszawa (Warsaw Stories), directed by Maciej Cuske, Kacper Lisowski, Nenad Mikovic, Mateusz Rakowicz and Tymon Wyciszkiewicz. This compilation of short films, made by a young team of filmmakers from the Wajda School, is an overview of contemporary Warsaw and a story about Polish religiosity, built on empty gestures and false symbols.
Magdalena Różańska in "Warsaw Stories", dir. Maciej Cuske, Nenad Miković, Tymon Wyciszkiewicz, Mateusz Rakowicz, Kacper Lisowski, photo by: WFDiF.
This debut by the young artists was one of the most professional productions shown at the festival. The jury allotted it awards for Best Acting Debut, to Klara Bielawka, to Arkadiusz Tomiak for excellent cinematography, to Paweł Skorupka’s music, and to Alekander Musiałowski, Mateusz Adamczyk, Marcin Lenarczyk and Zofia Moruś for sound engineering.
Both the youth jury and the audience elected Kordian Piwowarski’s Baczyński as the Best Film of the Festival.
Best Short Films
Within the short film category, the Best Animated Film Award went to Ewa Borysewicz for Do serca twego / To Thy Heart and the Award for the Best Documentary Film to Agnieszka Elbanowska for Niewiadoma Henryka Fasta / Dear Henry.
The latter is a story about an old mathematics professor who returns to Poland, having spent many years at a U.S. university. Being unable to accept his old age, he is still on a search for a perfect (and young) woman for himself.
Still from The Easter Crumble, dir. Julia Kolberger, photo by: Michał Panasiuk/Munk Studio
Jantar 2013 for Best Feature Film was received by Julia Kolberger for Mazurek / The Easter Crumble, one of the best films shown in Koszalin. In the 30-minute plot, Kolberger reveals the story of a family in which every member hides his or her disgraceful secrets in a meeting that sparks an opportunity for tasty comedy.
The jury also awarded three distinctions in the short-film category. These have been given to the fiction film Matka / Mother, directed by Łukasza Ostalski, the documentary Matka 24h / Mother 24/7 by Marcin Janos-Krawczyk, and Anita Kwiatkow ska-Naqvi's animated film Ab ovo.
This year, the Festival lasted six days. Throughout this time a total of 71 competition films were screened – 11 features, 28 short fiction films, 20 documentaries and 12 animations.
The feature-film jury consisted of director Juliusz Machulski (jury head), director Anna Wieczur-Bluszcz, actress Katarzyna Kwiatkowska, director Janusz Gauer and journalist Piotr Najsztub.
Members of the short-film competition jury were the director and screenwriter Sławomir Fabicki (jury head), animated-film director Wiola Sowa, writer Sylwia Chutnik, cinematographer Tomasz Naumiuk and documentary filmmaker Grzegorz Zariczny.
The Young and Cinema is the largest Polish event to present the young domestic cinema and one of the oldest overviews of the type in the country. The festival’s first edition took place in 1973; in the 1990s it was suspended. The Festival was reactivated by the now defunct Baltic College, then its organization was taken over by the city of Koszalin.
The Festival in Koszalin has featured debut films by filmmakers including Agnieszka Holland, Krzysztof Zanussi, Krzysztof Kieślowski, Filip Bajon, Wiesław Saniewski, Janusz Kijowski, Feliks Falk, Janusz Zaorski, Marek Koterski and Robert Gliński.
Sources: PAP, own materials, BS. 30.06.2013 translated by AM, 1.07.2013