Some national figures
Polish cinema has been one of the precursors of the seventh art since Kazimierz Prószyński invented the Pleograf in 1894. Just a few months before the Lumière brothers' first projection, this native Varsovian launched his country's industry with a camera and projection device that today ranks among the ancestors of cinema. In fact, it was with a Lumière cinematograph that the first public screening of "cinema" took place in Poland, at the Juliusz-Słowacki Theater in Krakow on November 14, 1896. It's impossible to draw up an exhaustive list of Polish filmmakers here, given the sheer number and diversity of their productions. But let's take a look at some of the great figures of this national cinema, as well as a few lesser-known but nonetheless crucial ones. Ladislas Starewitch was one of the pioneers of animated film, influencing the entire history of this medium with Le Roman de Renard (1932), while Pola Negri became one of Hollywood's biggest silent stars, thanks to films such as La Danseuse espagnole(1923) or Paradis défendu (1924) by Ernst Lubitsch. After the Second World War and the death of Stalin in 1953, a new "Polish school" emerged, led by Andrzej Wajda. Breaking away from socialist realism, Wajda - like his contemporaries Kawalerowicz, Munk and Konwicki - returned to Poland's recent history, the war and the torments of his Generation (1955). His most famous film from this period is undoubtedly Ashes and Diamonds (1958), a harsh, dark tale of post-war trauma and the actions and responsibilities of each individual. This black-and-white masterpiece would inspire many filmmakers of the Polish "new wave" in the 1960s, such as Polanski with Le Couteau dans l'eau (1962) and Zanussi with La Structure de cristal (1968). Until his death in 2016, Wajda would remain one of the leading figures of national cinema, directing numerous films, some of which - like The Iron Man (1981) - earned him censorship concerns. The film won the Palme d'Or that same year, a powerful message for a work inspired by the birth of the Solidarność movement.
At the same time, Krzysztof Kieślowski and director Agnieszka Holland, who won the Prix de la Critique at Cannes for her film Acteurs provinciaux (1979), appeared on the scene. With the last years of Communism and the fall of the Wall in 1989, Polish cinema fell victim to the economic crisis, while at the same time opening up to new international perspectives. Despite this situation, Kieślowski managed to make one of his most famous films, La Double Vie de Véronique (1991), starring French actress Irène Jacob, about two women, one Polish, the other French, whose lives are intrinsically linked between Paris and Krakow. Kieślowski then directed a Franco-Polish triptych based on the notions of freedom, equality and fraternity. Bleu, Blanc et Rouge, three films released between 1993 and 1994, won awards at Venice and Berlin and were nominated several times at Cannes and the Oscars. Kieślowski died prematurely on March 13, 1996, but his legacy lives on in Polish and world cinema today.
Since the 2000s, new genres and new figures have emerged, such as Małgorzata Szumowska, who won the Silver Bear in Berlin for her film Body (2015), or Paweł Pawlikowski, who won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film with Ida (2013). More recently, filmmakers Jan Komasa(La Communion, 2019) and Dorota Kobiela(La Passion Van Gogh, 2018) have breathed new life into an increasingly dynamic and varied cinema, in terms of fiction, documentary and animation.
Poland, a hotbed of cinema
Between its communist past, its medieval cities and the wounds left by the Second World War, Poland has inspired many a filmmaker. David Lynch places the action of his film Inland Empire (2006) between Warsaw and Łódź, while Wrocław is easily recognizable in Paweł Pawlikowski's Cold War (2018) or Steven Spielberg's Bridge of Spies (2015), starring Tom Hanks. Spielberg also directed one of his greatest stories partly in Krakow, the city where Oskar Schindler lives and works in Schindler's List (1993).Oskar's factory Schindler, on Lipowa Street, appears in the film, as does the notorious Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp not far from the city. Oskar Schindler's apartment, which we visit on Straszewskiego Street, Kraków Główny railway station, Mariacka Basilica and the Piłsudski Bridge are some of the most striking locations used in the film. Another filmmaker returning to this traumatic past, Polanski, will stage the deportation of the Jews in his film The Pianist (2002), which he shot mainly in Warsaw. In 2019, it's the hit series The Witcher, inspired by the fantasy novels of Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, that offers new perspectives on Polish heritage. The first season was filmed at Ogrodzieniec Castle, some 60 km from Krakow. Another fortress featured in the series, Niedzica Castle, is also well worth a visit.
Notorious Polish festivals and cinemas
Krakow is home to one of Europe's oldest film festivals, the Krakow Film Festival. Since 1961, it has devoted its program to short films, animation and documentaries, and takes place every year - or almost every year - in June. Nowe Horyzonty, or Festival of New Horizons, takes place in Wrocław in August, with a program of films off the beaten track. Since 1985, Warsaw has been home to the Warsaw International Film Festival, featuring international premieres, documentaries and first works by young filmmakers. See you in October in the capital for this event. Finally, the tour wouldn't be complete without mentioning some of the country's finest cinemas, such as Warsaw's Iluzjon cinema, Krakow's Kino Pod Baranami, or Łódź's intriguing Kino Stare. Also stop by the impressive Kinoteka, a complex housed in Warsaw's Palace of Culture and Science. Good news: in Poland, cinema is most often watched in its original version, so you can - depending on your preferences - enjoy certain screenings without needing to understand the language of Wajda or Kieślowski.
