It is the year 1952. In Warsaw, the foundations of Palace of Culture, the building that will become a landmark of the Stalinist era, are being raised. Sabina has turned thirty and her mother is trying to find her a husband. They live together with a grandmother who rates the candidates yet the girl is not interested in any of them. One day, in dramatic circumstances, she meets Bronislaw, young man with the looks of a movie star. His presence begins a series of surprising events that will change lives. The debut narrative feature of young documentarian Borys Lankosz, written by an eminent Polish writer Andrzej Bart and the first production in 15 years from Studio Kadr, home of some of Poland's leading filmmakers of the '50s and '60s, “Reverse” is a playful genre mix of black comedy, period drama and thriller. It gathered numerous awards internationally and on its home turf.
Review

BORYS LANKOSZ Born in 1973. Graduated from the National Film School in Lodz, recipient of several awards for documentary films. He is the creator of the documentary series "From a Different Angle", realised in Iran, China and Zimbabwe, and the films “Kurc” and “Poles, Poles” (with Wislawa Szymborska, Stanislaw Lem, Krzysztof Penderecki). His short film "ALIEN VI" was awarded a first prize at the Warsaw International Film Festival “Jewish Motifs” in 2008. His film “Reverse” made him into the brightest young star of Polish cinema in 2009 sweeping awards in lots of categories.

MNIEJSZE Z?O
The Lesser Evil
(2009, 110min)


Director: Janusz Morgenstern
Screenplay: Janusz Anderman, Janusz Morgenstern
Photography: Andrzej Ramlau
Music:Micha? Lorenc
Producer:Studio Filmowe (d. Zespó? Filmowy) Pespektywa
Cast:Les?aw ?urek, Anna Romantowska, Janusz Gajos, Wojciech Pszoniak, Magdalena Cielecka

The Lesser Evil revolves around the life of Kamil, a student of Polish philology, whose experimental poem published in a prestigious periodical brings him artistic and social success. Thrilled by his success he does not pay much attention to what is going on around him. In spite of his indifference, the harsh political reality of Poland at the time forces him to take sides and carry the consequences of choosing “the lesser evil”. The film paints an in-depth picture of Polish society at the turn of the 1970s and 1980s, showing the deep changes Polish mentality went through thanks to the emergence of Solidarity. “My rule is to create cinema that raises tension that does not allow the viewer to take his eyes off the screen”, said director, Janusz Morgenstern who wrote the script in co-operation with Janusz Anderman, the author of the book The Whole Time ( Ca?y czas), which was a basis for The Lesser Evil.

JANUSZ MORGENSTERN born in 1922. Film and television director, co-founder of the Polish Film School. One of the most outstanding Polish film directors. His debut Good Bye, Till Tomorrow starring Zbigniew Cybulski in 1960 brought him the Silver Boomerang Award in Melbourne and the Best Directing prize in Stratford. He was always interested in young characters searching for their identity, which resulted in works such as to Kill This Love (Trzeba zabi? t? mi?o??) and Mniejsze Niebo (A Smaller Sky). Morgernstern is also the creator of legendary Polish television series More Than Life at Stake (Stawka wieksza niz zycie), The Columbuses ( Kolumbowie) and Polish Roads (Polskie drogi). He is also a producer and artistic director of the Perspektywa studio, with 55 movies produced under his supervision.



KRÓLIK PO BERLI?SKU
Rabbit á la Berlin
(2009, 51min)


Director: Bartosz Konopka
Screenplay: Bartosz Konopka, Piotr Roso?owski
Photography: Piotr Roso?owski
Music:Maciej Cie?lak
Producer:MS Films

This creative documentary is a fascinating history lesson told through the eyes of animals - the unknown story of the thousands of wild rabbits who lived in the Death Zone of the Berlin Wall. In 1961 they became entrapped between the East and West Berlin. For 28 years, the strip of earth enclosed between the two walls was their safest of enclaves: full of grass, no predators, guards to ensure that no one disturbed them. But sadly, one day, the wall fell...The rabbits' fate serves as a guise for an allegorical tale of a totalitarian system. The director, Bartosz Konopka, says in an interview with Thomas White at documentary.org: “I realized it is a unique chance to tell about the history of communism and about the fates of my parents and friends, in a very surprising and meaningful way […] The biggest satisfaction was when the old people in Poland or Germany told us, "Yes, this is about us. We lived like rabbits; now that we  can see it clearly, this is terrifying.” This film received an Oscar nomination in 2010 for the short documentary category.

BARTEK KONOPKA Born in 1972. One of the most awarded young polish filmmaker. His last 40' feature Three for the Taking won already 12 prizes all over the world (among them Grand Prix and Best Actor in Brest SFF and Best Debut in Message to Man SFF St Petersburg) . His previous documentary The Goat Walker received Planete Prize on Berlinale 2004 among many other awards. This year he makes long feature debut The Fear of Heights.

ZERO
Zero
(2009, 110min)


Director: Pawe? Borowski
Screenplay:Pawe? Borowski
Photography: Arkadiusz Tomiak
Music:Adam Burzy?ski
Producer:Opus Film
Cast:Robert Wi?ckiewicz, Bogdan Koca, Zbigniew Konopka, Andrzej Mastalerz, Cezary Kosi?ski

A large modern city. 24 hours in the lives of dozens of characters. Sometimes their fates become intertwined naturally; sometimes it is pure chance We follow this story of love, hate, betrayal, sex, and violence.

PAWE? BOROWSKI Born in 1973. Studied painting and animation and graduated from the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts. Has worked in advertising as creative director since 1997. Produces commercials and promotional films. His short features Love Gamestation and I Love You were screened and awarded at many festivals in Poland and abroad. Zero is his full-length feature film debut.

PO-LIN. SLIVERS OF MEMORY
Po-lin. Okruchy Pamieci
(2009, 87min)

Director: Jolanta Dylewska
Screenplay: Jolanta Dylewska
Photography: Arkadiusz Tomiak
Music: Michal Lorenc
Producer: Bomedia

Unique archival collection showing the pre-war Poland, a world which had gone by, where two cultures, Jewish and Polish, coexisted next to each other, door to door, town to town. "Po-lin" which means "we shall stop here" in Yiddish, does not deny the painful past. It only shows that there was much more to it, which is worth reminding and, maybe, reconstructing. This is an excerpt from the International Documentary Film Event site: “In prize-winning film director Jolanta Dylewska’s magnificent PO-LIN those lively and vital societies of 1930’s Poland are reconstructed, a time when the Jewish and Polish cultures co-existed and were nourished by each other. Unique archival images breathe new life into a lost world, the sounds anchoring history in the present. POL-IN is a superb demonstration of singular craftsmanship, which without denying a painful past succeeds in casting new light on that which the war had overshadowed. The film offers a seldom-seen documentation of Jewish societies before the outbreak of the Second World War. For the first time we see these living milieus, re-created through amateur film footage and magical sound design. Presumed by critics to be Poland’s contribution to the Oscars in 2008, this film is an audio-visual gem – cinematic dialectic when it is felt most deeply”.

JOLANTA DYLEWSKA Born in 1958. A Director of Photography of numerous feature and documentary films. Graduated from the Cinematography Department in the Lodz Film School in 1989. Professor at the Film Directing and Cinematography Department of the Lodz Film School in Lodz. Since 1996 she has been teaching cinematography at the film school in Ludwigsburg. She debuted in 1990 in Germany with a feature-length film "Wedding Guests" (Hochzeitsgaste) by Nico Brucher. Recipient of numerous awards for direction and cinematography. Her documentary credits include: "Po-lin" (2008), "World According to Piotr D." (Swiat wedlug Piotr D., 2001), "Children of the Night" (1999).


KO?YSANKA
Lullaby
(2010, 95min)


Director: Juliusz Machulski
Screenplay:Adam Dobrzycki
Photography: Arkadiusz Tomiak
Music:MIcha? Lorenc
Producer: Studio Filmowe (d.Zespó? Filmowy) Zebra
Cast: Robert Wi?ckiewicz, Ma?gorzata Buczkowska, Janusz Chabior,

Residents and vistors in a picturesque village start disappearing mysteriously. Two police officers lead an investigation, but the leads do not provide any answers. Meanwhile, innocent victims keep disappearing into thin air…
JULIUSZ MACHULSKI Born in 1955. Director, screenwriter. Graduate of the Lodz Film School. Studied at Cal-Arts, in California. Lectured in film directing at Hunter College, NYC. Winner of dozens of festival awards. Creator of many acclaimed Polish comedies. Co-creator and artistic director of Studio Filmowe ZEBRA

OBCY VI
Alien VI
(2008, 30min)



Director: Borys Lankosz
Screenplay: Magdalena Bart
Photography: Bartosz Cierlica
Music: Miko?aj Trzaska
Producer: Stowarzyszenie Filmowców Polskich, TVP Kultura
Cast: Wojciech Klata, Joachim Lam?a, Karolina Dryzner, Piotr D?browski , Pawe? Tchórzelski, Maria Garbowska,


FREEDOM ON THE FENCE
(2009, 40min)

Freedom on the Fence - Official Trailer from Andrea Marks on Vimeo.