London’s 8th Kinoteka Polish Film Festiwal (sic), organised by the Polish Cultural Institute, has just announced dates and highlights. Spanning 4 March to 12 April 2010, it offers a cornucopia of delights including:
- An exploration of history past and present, looking at Poland under Communist rule; Borys Lankosz’s opening night film at the Riverside Studios, Reverse/Rewers (winner of the Golden Lion at this year’s Polish Film Festival), the rise of the Solidarity movement and post 1989 Polish liberation; Michał Rosa’s The Scratch (Rysa), a Polish The Lives of Others, Jacek Borcuch’s All That I Love (Wszystko co kocham), a story about 4 friends who form a punk band in 1981 Poland (selected In Competition, Sundance 2010) and Bartek Konopka’s Oscar shortlisted, humorous documentary, Rabbit a la Berlin (Królik po berlińsku); about the wild rabbits who lived in the ‘Death Zone’ between the Berlin Wall and the impact of their sudden liberation and adaptation to life in the free world. Poland’s young filmmakers bring a sense of hope and optimism to these historical subjects, interwining the complex personal and political stories.
- Views of contemporary Poland, focusing on social issues that have arisen since the Fall of Communism; teens selling their bodies for material goods as explored in Katarzyna Rosłaniec’s Mall Girls (Galerianki), the hedonistic, drug-fuelled boredom and political burnout felt by Polish youth in Dorota Masłowska’s controversial, post-modern literary debut, Snow White and Russian Red (Wojna polsko-ruska, directed by Xawery Żuławski with Trainspotting-style visual excess, vim and vigour, plus a stunning lead performance from Borys Szyc. As well as more personal tales of personal identity, immigration and the pressures of city living in Marcin Wrona’s My Flesh My Blood (Moja krew), about the relationship between a washed-up boxer and an illegal Vietnamese immigrant, and Pawel Borowski’s Zero.
- A retrospective insight into Polish cinema’s most (in)famous son, actor/director Roman Polanski, featuring an exhibition of photographs and posters, many previously unseen materials from Polanski’s own archive, taken from the Łódź Museum of Cinematography’s recent show ‘Roman Polanski. Actor. Director’ as well as a season of Polanski’s early films featuring the music of Jazz pianist and composer Krzysztof Komeda. This retrospective celebrates Komeda’s work and his relationship with Polanski. A crucial figure in the Polish Modern Jazz Movement, developing a uniquely European sound, his music was embraced by the young filmmakers of the 50s and 60s including Polanski, Wajda and Skolimowski before his untimely death. Komeda’s music is most closely associated with Polanski’s Knife In The Water (Nóż w wodzie), Cul-de-sac, and Rosemary’s Baby (for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe).
- Tomasz Stanko, legendary Polish Free Jazz trumpeter, and world respected musician will perform a concert at the Barbican, giving his personal tribute to Krzysztof Komeda’s music. A close friend and collaborator of Komeda, Stanko played and recorded alongside him in the Komeda Quintet. Their legendary record Astigmatic is still considered one of the great jazz records of its time. The Barbican concert brings together these 2 greats of Polish Jazz and will also premiere a specially commissioned new visual track, complementing Stanko’s interpretation of Komeda’s music.
- Anna Molska at Tate Modern. Polish artist, Anna Molska takes the performing body as her primary medium, drawing on the history of the Soviet bloc in her short video works, focusing on abstract geometric forms, influenced by early Twentieth Century constructivist theatre and avant garde film, featuring rudimentary dialogue that hints at power relations between Russia and Poland.
The 8th Kinoteka Polish Film Festiwal will be taking place at a number of venues across London including The Riverside Studios, Barbican, BFI Southbank, Prince Charles, Tate Modern, Tricycle Cinema and for the first time will link up with Birds Eye View and London International Documentary Film Festivals for screenings. Kinoteka highlights will tour regionally in cinemas at key cities across the UK throughout March and April.
Full details will be announced on Kinoteka’s website in January.