On Saturday evening, amber rain fell on young filmmakers: this is the name of the seaside – Wielkie Amber – that is given to the laurels awarded at the Koszalin Film Debuts Festival. This year, the event was held for the 42nd time, and a record number of films competed in four competitions. Damian Kocur’s Bread and Salt, described by the jurors as “a shocking vision of Poland”, was recognized as the best Polish feature debut in Koszalin. It is a story about the native province and about everyday violence, born out of nothing.
New faces, new topics
As every year, the short film competition in Koszalin brought a lot of interesting discoveries. Most of the proposals were works created in film schools. It is always a very interesting laboratory of content and form, an excellent place to anticipate the future of Polish cinema – the competition is contested by artists who will soon be making full-length cinema films and series available on streaming services.
Their school films are works that do not yet have to adapt to the expectations of the market, international formats and producer guidelines. Watching them, you can check what is important for the youngest generation of Polish cinematography today and how they want to talk about it.
There were many films in the competition that expressed ecological fear for the future of the planet – such as in “Elementy” by Kuba Solarz, in which the protagonists, locked in their apartment due to increasing smog and heat, watch with horror the rising temperature of: the air and their own emotions. Themes related to non-heteronormative sexuality or non-binary identity also often appeared – as in “Dziecko” by Zuzanna Grajcewicz about a young couple who give birth to an intersex child.
There was also the topic of mental problems, which is important for today’s youth – an interesting illustration of them was “Stwór” by Damian Kosowski, a story about a child who is cared for by a person in a strong mental crisis. The topic of refugees staying in Poland could not be overlooked – A Pair of Shoes by Jakub Kozieła tells the story of the difficult coming to terms with social degradation, which is very common in exile.
Stories about searching, new faces of old age
The best director-debutant was Tomasz Wiński, the author of the film Borders of Love, a brave story about feelings that transcend moral patterns and break taboos. Other awards and distinctions went to the filmmakers: “Norwegian Dream” by Leiv Devold – a homosexual love story with a social context, set in the environment of Polish guest workers in Norway, “Dad” by Anna Maliszewska – an unobvious story about Polish-Ukrainian relations, “Roving Woman” by Michał Chmielewski – a women’s road movie about finding oneself. The performances of Hana Vagnerova in “Borders of Love” and Tymoteusz Bies in the film “Bread and Salt” were considered “actor’s discoveries”. Acting awards went to non-professional actresses: the award for a child role went to a few-year-old girl from Kiev, Polina Gromova, who starred in the film “Dad”, Nikola Raczko, who played in the film “Bread and Salt”, was also noticed.
Lea Glob’s Apolonia, Apolonia, a story about a young artist looking for her place in the world and in the art community, was recognized as the best feature-length documentary debut. Other awards in this competition went to the creator and creator of the films: “My Ozerna” by Karina Będkowska – a story about searching for identity and “Pianoforte” by Jakub Piątek – an unusual look at the Chopin Competition. The best short feature film was awarded to Michał Toczek’s “Be Someone” by Michał Toczek, a comedy about a family who buys Lech Wałęsa’s former apartment and impersonates its previous tenants, playing the Wałęsas in front of the tours that visit the apartment. Natalia Koniarz received the Jantar in the short documentary category – her “Postcards from the Verge” is a story about a journey to the end of the world, about skirmishes with their demons and about refugees fighting for their dignity.
An honorable mention in the short film competition went to Natasza Parzymies for the feature film “My Stares”. It is a story full of empathy and tenderness about old age and how difficult it was to hide homosexual love in a closet for half a century. Old age is also shown in an unusual way in the awarded short documentary by Maria Wider – the heroine of the film “An Old Lady Is Looking for” is looking for love on dating websites and boldly talks about her emotional and sexual experiences. Piotr Chmielewski won in the animation category. His film “Krab”, based on a funny, very surprising plot, shows, among others, how the titular crustacean feels just before it is cooked in the soup. In the new competition “Nakreteni na Teatroteka”, in which the performances of the television theater competed, Jantara was awarded to Luiza Budejko for the performance “Dancing with a Victim”.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
