ZagrebDox is an international film festival held in the Croatian capital since 2005. The organisers have set themselves the goal of promoting the most interesting domestic and foreign documentary productions. In addition to competition screenings, the program includes retrospectives and numerous special sections.
Two Polish documentaries participating in the competition brought two special mentions. One went to The Balcony Movie by Paweł Łoziński.
Paweł Łoziński’s film is a very contemporary production that asks a number of universal questions. Can anyone be a film protagonist? Can you fit the entire world in a single frame? Director Paweł Łoziński watches people from his balcony. Both young and old, they walk by smiling, sad, thoughtful, staring at their phones. Residents of the neighbourhood, or casual visitors, ordinary passers-by. The author approaches them, asks questions, talks about their life and how they’re doing. Standing there with his camera for over 2 years, he created a place for dialogue, a secular confessional where everyone can stop and tell others about themselves. Every person carries their own riddles and secrets. They can’t be easily labelled. Life can’t be imagined. The Balcony Movie is a radical return to the early days of cinema, when it was people who approached the camera. Perhaps one just needs to stop and stay a while to see more?
A list of all awarded productions can be found here.