Three completely different stories, three directors who are still at the beginning of their creative journey. Each title premiered at major international festivals and were warmly received by audiences and juries alike.
Ula by Agnieszka Iwańska is a tale of the emancipation of a woman, an artist, and an emigrant, told through private Super 8 recordings, featuring unique footage of the world’s greatest jazz musicians from the 1970s, including Stan Getz, Wayne Shorter, Joe Zawinul, Jaco Pastorius, Kenny Kirkland, set against the backdrop of 1970s New York. Additionally, there’s an unpublished recording of Jerzy Kosiński’s voice, author of The Painted Bird, from Urszula Dudziak’s private archive, as well as the last recording of Chet Baker and the brilliant jazz of the 70s: Urszula Dudziak with Adam Makowicz, Michał Urbaniak, Zbigniew Namysłowski, and others. The film was produced by Telewizja Polska and Michał Szymanowicz’s Agencja Reklamowa Koma 2.
Agnieszka Iwańska is a journalist. She graduated from the University of Warsaw, Faculty of Law and Administration. She completed a documentary course at the Andrzej Wajda Master School of Film Directing and hosted the TV cultural magazine Sztukateria, Jazda kulturalna, and Rozmowy niepolityczne. Author of the monodrama Życie to nie grzech (“Life is Not a Sin”), based on Urszula Dudziak’s autobiography. Since 2005, she has been a member of the Warsaw Bar Association. Ula marks her directorial debut.
In contrast, Radical Move by Aniela Gabryel is a powerful documentary that raises several bold questions. Theatre or cult? Art or violence? Members of the legendary theatre group “Workcenter”, founded by Jerzy Grotowski, for the first time speak so candidly about their experiences working with the methods of one of the greatest revolutionaries of Polish and world theatre. Thomas Richards, Grotowski’s main collaborator, continues the work initiated by the master after his death. In a closed facility, he works with a group of actors who are constantly being tested and pushed beyond their limits. Will it withstand the test of time and the arrival of a generation raised in a reality different from the one Grotowski created in? Radical Move was produced by Koi Studio.
Aniela Gabryel, film director. She graduated from Theatre studies at the Jagiellonian University and film directing at the Lodz Film School. Her films were screened and awarded at many festivals in Poland and around the world. Her feature-length documentary When This Wind Will Stop has been shown and appreciated at many film festivals, and also received an award at the IDFA festival in 2016. Currently, she is finishing work on her feature debut and is embarking on other film projects.
Aga Borzym’s Girls’ Stories is something else entirely. Seemingly nothing happens, but there are so many changes. Jagoda and Zuzia are friends from the neighbourhood. They meet at the local square. Sometimes they go for ice cream or to the playground. And they always have a lot to talk about. Being a girl is a special experience, and they are just entering adolescence. Biology, hormones, pimples, first rebellion, first love. The first period – when will it come? Will they be different afterwards? Grownups aren’t always able to give support or provide answers. And the girls see more and more. School absurdities, unwanted rules, dilemmas to be solved. Jagoda and Zuzia are great commentators: defiant, ironic, independent, scared. With a great appetite for life! They introduce us to the “girlish”’ world that every woman remembers. And every boy who watches the film will finally be able to discover. The film was produced by Pinot Film.
Aga Borzym is making her directorial debut. She works in editing and short film production on a daily basis. Once, she became an engineer by accident. She graduated from multimedia techniques at the Faculty of Mechatronics at the Warsaw University of Technology and from photography at the Academy of Fine Arts in Poznań. In her free time, she makes animations.