The festival also boasted a Polish Independents Competion of feature films in addition to the 24 films in the main competition and a Young Cinema Competition of films from film schools.

The jury headed by Polish director Krzysztof Krauze admitted that they were spoiled for choice this year as the competition of feature films was one of the strongest in recent memory. The Gdynia festival screens the annual production of new Polish films each year and the most significant feature of the event was the overall high level of the films in competition.

Polish film production has been growing steadily since the Polish Film Institute (www.pisf.pl) was set up just over five years ago and this year between 50 and 60 feature films were produced. Just 10 years ago organizers struggled to fill the competition as Poland produced about 20 feature films a year. PISF helmer Agnieszka Odorowidz was greeted with resounding applause as she took the stage to announce the winning film. Gdynia is also the venue for the annual meeting of the Polish Filmmakers Association and the PISF programme has been branded a major success in improving both the quantity and artistic quality of Polish films.

Lankosz's The Reverse which has already attracted the attention of several festival programmers is stylish black and white film that is set in 1952 against the backdrop of the building of Warsaw's famous as well as infamous Palace of Culture, Stalin's gift to the Polish people. The story revolves three women, a mother, her daughter Sabina, and grandmother whose lives are changed when a young man, Bronislaw, appears and Sabina falls madly in love with him.

By contrast Zulawski's Snow White and Russian Red is a hard hitting and emotionally charged adaptation of Dorota Maslowska's novel that has already won a number of prizes at international festivals including the main prize of the New Polish Cinema competition at the Era New Horizons Festival this summer for both the director and the producer Jaeck Samojlowicz who helms Film Media who are handling world sales.

But the programme was also rich with the premiers of many other important directors. Jan Jakub Kolski unveiled his Happy Aphonya another film set in the early 1950's.

Janosik directed by Agnieszka Holland and Kasia Adamik also screened in competition. Janosik produced by Apple Film (www.applefilm.pl) is the largest Central European co-production since Bathory and was recently released in Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic where it set box office records. Janosik is set to open in Hungary next

The Jury of 34th Polish Film Festival in Gdynia:

The Chairman:
Krzysztof Krauze

Members of the Jury:
Ewa Braun
Bogdan Dziworski
Zbigniew Hołdys
Andrzej Jakimowski
Dominika Ostałowska
Anda Rottenberg

Awards Main Competition:

1. THE GRAND AWARD OF 34th Polish Film Festival "THE GOLDEN LIONS" for the best film: "The Reverse" („Rewers") directed by Borys Lankosz - 100 000 zł
   and
   THE GRAND AWARD OF 34th Polish Film Festival "THE GOLDEN LIONS" for the producer of the best film: "The Reverse" („Rewers") - Jerzy Kapuściński
2. THE AWARD "THE SILVER LIONS" of 34th Polish Film Festival for the film "Snow White and Russian Red" („Wojna polsko-ruska") directed by Xawery Żuławski - 50 000 zł and THE AWARD "THE SILVER LIONS" of 34th Polish Film Festival for producer of the best film "Snow White and Russian Red" („Wojna polsko-ruska") - Jacek Samojłowicz
3. SPECIAL AWARD OF THE JURY for outstanding artistic values for the film "The Forest" („Las") directed by Piotr Dumała - 15 000 zł
4. INDIVIDUAL AWARDS

• Wojtek Smarzowski for directing the film "The Dark House" („Dom zły") - 20 000 zł
• Łukasz Kośmicki and Wojciech Smarzowski for screenplay of the film "Dark House" („Dom zły") - 20 000 zł (to share)
• Katarzyna Rosłaniec for directing debut: the film "Mall Girls" („Galerianki") - 15 000 zł (funded by the President of the City of Gdynia)
• Agata Buzek for the leading performance by an actress in the film "The Reverse" („Rewers") - 15 000 zł
• Borys Szyc for the leading performance by an actor in the film "Snow White and Russian Red" („Wojna polsko-ruska") - 15 000 zł
• Filip Garbacz for acting debut in the film "Piggies" („Świnki") - 15 000 zł
• Marcin Koszałka for cinematography in the film "The Reverse" („Rewers") -
  15 000 zł
• Włodzimierz Pawlik for music in the film "The Reverse" („Rewers") - 15 000 zł
• Elwira Pluta for art direction in the film "The Magic Tree" („Magiczne drzewo") and "All That I Love" („Wszystko, co kocham") - 15 000 zł
• Dorota Kolak for supporting performance by an actress in the film "I Am Yours" („Jestem Twój") - 12 000 zł
• Marcin Dorociński for supporting performance by an actor in the film "The Reverse" („Rewers") - 12 000 zł
• Mateusz Adamczyk for sound in the film "Snow White and Russian Red" („Wojna polsko-ruska") - 12 000 zł
• Paweł Laskowski for editing the film "The Dark House" („Dom zły") - 12 000 zł
• Anna Englert for costume design in films "Snow White and Russian Red" („Wojna polsko-ruska" and "Miracle Seller" („Handlarz cudów") - 12 000 zł
• Mirosława Wojtczak, Ludmiła Krawczyk and Waldemar Pokromski for make-up in the film "The Reverse" („Rewers") - 12 000 zł (to share)

Independent Cinema Competition

The Jury of the 8th Independent Cinema Competition:

- Janusz Zaorski - director, screenwriter, producer (Chairman of the Jury)

- Magdalena Schejbal - actress

- Maciej Buchwald - independent film director, actor, screenwriter

- Piotr Marecki - editor, publisher, cultural studies scholar

- Wojciech Mecwaldowski - actor

after watching 17 films qualified by the Organisational Committee of 34th PFF, decided to award the following awards and special mentionings:

Honorary mentionings:

1. Mateusz Damięcki for the role in the film "Black", dir. Dominik Matwiejczyk

2. Marcin Kabaj for the role in films: "STiUDENT II" i "Consumers", dir. Hubert Gotkowski

3. Group Award for: Robert Jarociński, Modest Ruciński, Wojciech Solarz for the film "Albert's Mystery", dir. Wojciech Solarz

Special Award of the Jury of 2.500 zł

for the courage to undertake difficult and complicated subjects

Dominik Matwiejczyk for the screenplay to the film "Black"

Special Award of the Jury of 2.500 zł

for consequent and proffesional directing

Jan Kwieciński for the film "Incident"

Grand Prix of Independent Cinema Competition of 10.000 zł

for original screenplay and daring directing for Grzegorz Lipiec, innovatory cinematography in independent cinema for Piotr Materna and Krzysztof Gawałkiewicz and wonderful acting creation for Tomasz Burka

"Horizontal 8", dir. Grzegorz Lipiec

The Awards of 34th Polish Film Festival in Gdynia in Young Cinema Competition

The Jury of 3rd Young Cinema Competition:

- Janusz Zaorski - director, screenwriter, producer (Chairman of the Jury)

- Magdalena Schejbal - actress

- Maciej Buchwald - independent film director, actor, screenwriter

- Piotr Marecki - editor, publisher, cultural studies scholar

- Wojciech Mecwaldowski - actor

after watching 30 films qualified by the Organisational Committee of 34th PFF, decided to award the following awards and special mentionings:

Honorary mentionings:

1. Thu Ha Mai for the role in the film "Hanoi - Warsaw", dir. Katarzyna Klimkiewicz

2. Olga Serebryakova for the role in the film "Come to me", dir. Ewa Banaszkiewicz

3. Piotr Skiba for the role in the film "Echo", dir. Magnus von Horn

Mentioning of 2.000 zł

for an ambitious and successful portrait of three generations in contemporary Poland

"My New Life", dir. Barbara Białowąs

Mentioning of 2.000 zł

for great sensitivity and ability to express emotions

"Come to me", dir. Ewa Banaszkiewicz

Special Award of the Jury of 4.000 zł

for introducing emancipation proccess in Polish cinema

"Hanoi - Warsaw", dir. Katarzyna Klimkiewicz

Grand Prix of Young Cinema Competition of 7.000 zł

for innovation in contents and film language

"Dark Room Shouldn't Be Afraid Of", dir. Jakub Czekaj