INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION
MEMORIES OF SUMMER/WSPOMNIENIE LATA, dir. Adam Guziński (Poland). World premiere
1970s, small provincial town in Poland. Teenage Piotrek is spending summer holidays with his mother. Little does he expect that it will turn out to be the most important summer in his life and the experience of first love, friendship and loss will change him forever.
THE SUN, THE SUN BLINDED ME/SŁOŃCE, SŁOŃCE MNIE OŚLEPIŁO, dir. Anka and Wilhelm Sasnal (Poland, Switzerland). Polish premiere
Rafał Mularz, alienated from the society, seeks solace in daily routines protecting him from the outside world. However, an unexpected meeting forces him to re-examine his life. Loosely inspired by Albert Camus’ The Stranger, the film premiered at Locarno Film Festival.
CLAIR OBSCUR/ TEREDDÜT, dir. Yeşim Ustaoğlu (Turkey, Poland). European premiere
Two very different women struggle with the same problem. Deprived of the right to discover themselves, to love and be loved, they try to find their own voice in a country torn between modernity and tradition. CLAIR OBSCUR/ TEREDDÜT is scheduled to premiere at Toronto Film Festival.
1-2 COMPETITION
PLAYGROUND/PLAC ZABAW, dir. Bartosz M. Kowalski (Poland)
It’s the last day of school in a small Polish town. 12-year-old Gabrysia doesn’t have a lot of time to tell her classmate that she has fallen in love with him. She sets up a secret meeting, but things don’t go according to plan. Inspired by true events, this observational drama focuses on juvenile psychopathology.
PARK, dir. Sofia Exarchou (Greece, Poland). Polish Premiere
After ten years, the Olympic Village in Athens is in decay. Among the abandoned athletic facilities and new-money tourist resorts, Dimitris, Anna and their friends explore the ruins of past glory. A portrayal of a young generation that has been betrayed and deprived of its future.
THE SAINT/SVENTASIS, dir. Andrius Blaževičius (Lithuania, Poland). World Premiere
As economic crisis in Lithuania deepens, Vytas looses his job. Pushed by his wife, he immediately starts looking for a new one, but not to much success. Instead, he starts looking for a man claiming to have seen… Jesus.
DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION
COMMUNION/KOMUNIA, dir. Anna Zamęcka (Poland). Polish premiere
Ola is only 14 years old, but she already takes care of her alcoholic father, autistic brother and a mother who lives in a different place. But most of all, she tries to reunite the family. Her brother Nikodem’s approaching Holy Communion seems like a perfect excuse to get them back together.
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
TRUE CRIMES, dir. Alexandros Avranas (USA, Poland). World Premiere
Based on incredible true events – as well as an article written by David Grann and published in The New Yorker in 2008 – it tells the story of a complicated case which re-opens once it’s discovered that a newly published novel seemingly holds the key to the unsolved murder. It features several Polish stars including Agata Kulesza and such renowned actors as Jim Carrey and Charlotte Gainsbourg.
TALES OF MEXICO/EL HABITATION, dir. Carlos Carrera, Daniel Gimenez Cacho, Carlos Bolado, Ernesto Contreras, Alfonso Pineda Uolla, Alejandro Valle, Ivan Avila Duenas, Natalia Beristain (Mexico, Poland). World Premiere
Eight different stories – all directed by different helmers – are set in the same room over the period of 100 years, serving as an apt metaphor of Mexico’s historical tribulations. Small, confined space witnesses the dreams, hopes and disappointments of its ever-changing residents. The film is co-produced by Polish production company No Sugar Films
SHORT FILMS COMPETITION
FIRST POLE ON MARS/PIERWSZY POLAK NA MARSIE, dir. Agnieszka Elbanowska (Poland). World Premiere
Kazimierz Błaszczak is retired, but he never stopped dreaming of going to Mars. Suddenly, it seems like his biggest dream is about to come true: a Dutch businessman is looking for people who are willing to go there in 2023 as a part of Mars One programme.
BED SIDE STORY, dir. Marcin Łubiński (Poland). World Premiere
Story of an unexpected late night visit and a teenager faced with something he thought was just a fairy tale.
THE PLAY-OFF/BARAŻ, dir. Tomasz Gąssowski (Poland). World Premiere
38-year-old Zyga lives in the suburbs of Warsaw. He tries to explain the rules that run the world to his son, Witek. The rules he doesn’t necessarily follow himself, which doesn’t go unnoticed by the clever boy.
