Solidarity – one of the most important ideas of the Polish Presidency of the EU Council – will be presented on screens across European cinemas. ‘Solidarity on Screen: The Polish Presidency Film Review’ is a film review presenting solidarity in various ways: from the history of ‘NSZZ Solidarność’ social resistance, to common facing of challenges of the present. Polish films will appear in many European arthouse cinemas and at film festivals in, among others, Belgrade, Budapest, Munich, Brussels, and Vienna.
‘Solidarity on Screen’ is a diverse and multidimensional review of the Polish cinema. A common denominator for all films that have found their way to the programme is the topic of solidarity – one of the main pillars, apart from security, of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The topic is presented not only in historical terms, as a story about the social resistance movement, ‘NSZZ Solidarność’ trade union which has contributed to overcoming the Yalta order in Europe, but also in a broader perspective: as a feeling of joint responsibility in the face of misfortune, offering help and support, as well as communal dealing with challenges of the present. The films were selected based on 5 thematic categories that explore different perspectives and approaches to solidarity: solidarity in historical terms, solidarity with nature, solidarity with a human being, community, and sisterhood.
European viewers will have a chance to become familiar with classic Polish films, such as ‘Man of Iron’ by Andrzej Wajda, or ‘Three Colours. Red’ by Krzysztof Kieślowski. However, emphasis will be placed on movies by contemporary filmmakers and the most famous productions of recent years, among others, ‘IO’ by Jerzy Skolimowski, ‘Kos’ by Paweł Maślona, and ‘The Silent Twins’ by Agnieszka Smoczyńska.
Screenings as part of the ‘Solidarity on Screen’ programme take place in collaboration with the most valued film festivals and arthouse cinemas located in different parts of Europe. Already in February a series of screenings will start at Theatiner Film, one of the oldest and most prestigious arthouse cinemas in Munich. The screenings will include such titles as ‘Man of Iron’, ‘Escape from the “Liberty” Cinema’, and ‘The Balcony Movie.’ In March, at the Stadtkino in Vienna, selected movies will be presented as part of the New Polish Films series. ‘Solidarity on Screen’ will also appear on the Febiofest festival, the largest Slovakian international film festival devoted to feature films. The film programme will continue until the end of June and will visit the total of 11 European cities.
Detailed timeline of events is available at: https://poland2025eu.culture.pl/.
Not only cinema – a series of ‘Celluloid Solidarity’ podcasts
The film review will be supplemented by a series of ‘Celluloid Solidarity’ podcasts, which focuses on promoting Polish movies dealing with the topic of solidarity. The series covers 5 episodes in the form of narrative monologues created on the basis of in-depth interviews with directors whose films make up the ‘Solidarity on Screen’ programme. The filmmakers talk about their work methods, their movies, and what solidarity means to them.
Nikola Radić – an outstanding film critic, essayist, author, and translator – is the programme’s host. The authors’ statements are accompanied by his comments, which allows to better understand the context of the work’s emergence and pointing to the values communicated by the movies that are of significance from the point of view of European viewers.
You will find more information about the podcasts on the website of the cultural programme of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
List of films:
Solidarity in historical perspective:
- ‘80 million’, directed by Waldemar Krzystek, 2011 – action, political
Solidarity activists try to cash out 80 million zlotys from a bank before the Security Service freezes the accounts of the oppositionists.
- ‘Solidarity, Solidarity...’, 2005;
A novella film created to mark the 25th anniversary of the Solidarity movement. It comprises 13 10-minute etudes – each directed by a different Polish director. They come in a variety of forms: mini-feature, music video, documentary, animation, or interview.
- ‘Leave No Traces’, directed by Jan P. Matuszyński, 2021
When Grzegorz Przemyk is beaten to death by militia officers, his friend and only witness to the incident, Jurek Popiel, decides to fight for justice. Soon after, the state apparatus is doing everything to stop Jurek.
- ‘Escape from the “Liberty” Cinema’, directed by Wojciech Marczewski, 1990
During a cinema screening of the film ‘Jutrzenka’, the protagonists come to life on screen and enter into a dialogue with the audience. The response from the authorities is to send a censor to the site.
- ‘Man of Iron’, directed by Andrzej Wajda, 1981
It is 1980, a wave of workers’ strikes is surging across Poland. A radio journalist subservient to the authorities, editor Winkel, is tasked with making a reportage discrediting one of the workers’ activists, Maciek Tomczyk. His approach changes fundamentally in the course of his work.
- ‘The Double’ directed by Jan Holoubek, 2023; spy film
The film is based upon the real-life actions of Jerzy Kaczmarek, a so-called ‘duplicate’, meaning a spy who has stolen the identity of another person and infiltrated the structures of another state under false data and biography.
- ‘Solidarity According to Women’, directed by M. Dzido, P. Śliwowski, 2014 – documentary
The film tells the story of a dozen courageous Polish women, whose wisdom, determination and commitment to the 1980s opposition changed the political reality in Poland. What binds the two facets of the film together is the co-director and narrator, Marta Dzido. Born in 1981, the emblematic daughter of the Solidarity movement is trying to reclaim a place for women in the historical narrative.
- ‘Scarborn’, directed by Paweł Maślona, 2023 – historical drama
The film’s setting begins in the spring of 1794 in the embattled Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. General Tadeusz ‘Kos’ Kosciuszko returns to the country and intends to raise an uprising against the Russians, rallying the Polish nobility and peasants with the help of the former slave Domingo. The ruthless Russian cavalry captain, Dunin, is tasked with capturing the General to prevent the rebellion from breaking out.
- ‘Imago’, directed by Olga Chajdas, 2023
A post-punk psychological drama about a young woman yearning for life amidst the harshness of communist Poland. A story of mother-daughter bonding, hunger for freedom, sex, and meditation. The story begins in the Tri-City in 1987 and ends in 1989, after the first free elections in Poland. Its background lies in the rebellious Tri-City music scene of the late 1980s, a cultural and social phenomenon of the period, and a harbinger of revolutionary change in Poland.
- ‘Be Somebody’, directed by Michał Toczek, 2023 (short feature film) – comedy-drama
Wiktor’s family moves into a new flat. When it becomes clear that the place was owned by Lech Wałęsa in the past, they decide to turn it into a museum.
- ‘All That I Love’, directed by Jacek Borcuch, 2009
Spring 1981 in Poland. In a seaside town, 18-year-old Janek, the son of a naval officer, starts a punk rock band. In the background there is a love story and the birth of the Solidarity movement.
- ‘Wałęsa’, directed by Andrzej Wajda, 2013,
The film tells the story of the extraordinary path of Lech Wałęsa who went from being an electrician in a Gdansk shipyard to becoming a valiant trade union leader in socialist Poland, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and president after Poland regained its freedom.
- ‘A Year in the Life of the Country’, directed by Tomasz Wolski, 2024
‘A dark night of the martial law’ – this is the way the period in the Communist Poland that began after 13 December 1981 is often referred to. But the times of state-organised terror aimed at the Solidarity movement also had its different faces. By working exclusively with archival materials, not only those that are well-known, the film looks behind the scenes of those events. To the roll of military snare drums, it shows everyday lives of residents of Poland as well as operations of the propaganda and the military. It reaches out for different opinions of everyday people, confronts parades, clashes, and carnival parties with one another. Thus, it undermines the mythologised image of the Polish society as a victim of the system. The film was awarded with the ‘Silver Horn’ prize at the 64th Krakow Film Festival. ‘A Year in the Life of the Country’ presents a unique chapter in the history of Poland – the years 1980 and 1981 and the emergence of the Solidarity movement – and breathes new meaning into it. The jury was mesmerised by the masterful editing, visible in the film’s pace, selection of the soundtrack, soundscape, and structure of the narrative. The film evokes a broad spectrum of emotions: from laughter to sympathy and outrage, thus making the distant history all the more significant and topical for the present-day viewers.
- ‘The Power of Resistance’, directed by Elżbieta Benkowska, 2024 (short feature film)
Political idealism and hopes for a better tomorrow of Olga, an actress, are put to the hardest test. Authoritarian, omniscient Communist regime decides to break her just when her father is taken to a hospital and fights for his life while her husband is in prison. Olga has to make a choice.
Solidarity with nature:
- ‘Spoor’, directed by Agnieszka Holland, Kasia Adamik, 2017 – crime
The film tells the story of an elderly woman, Janina Duszejko, a retired engineer and school English teacher. The protagonist is a vegetarian involved in astrology and lives in a village on the edge of the Kłodzko Basin in the Sudeten Mountains. Duszejko embarks upon a private investigation following a number of murders against poachers and hunters who share a passion for hunting.
- ‘Simona’, directed by Natalia Koryncka-Gruz, 2021 – biographical documentary
An eccentric biologist and animal researcher, Simona Kossak, who has lived most of her life in the ‘Dziedzinka’ forester’s lodge in the middle of the forest, is to this day captivating in her personality and independence. The exploration of her passionate and paradox-laden biography is a surprisingly up-to-date journey closely related to contemporary issues.
- ‘The Last Generation’, directed by M. Borowy, 2021 – documentary;
A straightforward and honest portrait of a young generation of climate activists. The euphoria of collective action and police brutality, enthusiasm – and a sense of being burnt out.
- ‘IO’ directed by Jerzy Skolimowski, 2022 – drama
A donkey travels across Europe and encounters an array of vivid human characters on its way.
- ‘Bucolic’, directed by Karol Pałka, 2021 – documentary
Mother and daughter live in austere conditions, away from people. They live in tune with the rhythm of the seasons, surrounded by dogs, cats and goats and the spirits of the dead.
- ‘The Village of Swimming Cows’, directed by Katarzyna Trzaska, 2018 – documentary
A trio of spiritual and environmentally aware young Berliners, on a holiday trip and in search of places where people live in harmony with nature, explore the east of Poland and come across a tiny village in the Podlasie region, where they rent an old wooden house devoid of any amenities from a local farmer who breeds cows and produces milk. Despite the communications barrier and cross-cultural divide, can today’s neo-hippies and farmers from Podlasie come to an understanding?
- ‘About the dog who travelled by rail’, directed by Magdalena Nieć, 2023 - family film
The life of Zuzia, a girl with heart problems, changes when Lampo, an unusual sheepdog who travels by rail, enters it. The traveling dog becomes Zuzia’s friend and an Internet celebrity. However, the director, jealous of Lampo’s fame, wants to get rid of the dog from his station.
- ‘The Earth’, directed by Zuzanna Solakiewicz, 2020 - documentary musical
Agriculture is currently in a state of transition, slowly becoming a business - food production. However, it is still possible to find the old attitudes towards the land, which, in addition to hard and arduous work, require a special spirituality, where man is part of nature, and so is his voice. It is from this approach that traditional village music was born. The documentary is a film essay of great emotional load.
Solidarity with a human being:
- ‘Korczak’, directed by Andrzej Wajda, 1990;
It portrays the fate of Dr Janusz Korczak in a piecemeal fashion – the Nazi crime against children and their guardians from the Orphanage during the execution of ‘Operation Reinhardt’. Wojciech Pszoniak performed as Korczak.
- ‘Birds Are Singing in Kigali’, directed by Joanna and Krzysztof Krauze, 2017
It tells the story of a Polish ornithologist researching the decline of vulture populations in Rwanda. Once the genocide begins, a woman rescues a young Rwandan girl from the Tutsi tribe. She takes her to Poland with her. Upon arrival, the protagonists are left broken and unable to fit into the routine of everyday life. Both seek to pick themselves up from their experiences. A story of friendship, forgiveness and the power of nature.
- ‘The Green Border’, directed by Agnieszka Holland, 2023
After moving to the Podlasie region, psychologist Julia is unwittingly a witness and actor in the dramatic events at the Polish-Belarusian border. Although aware of the risks and legal implications, she joins a group of activists to help the refugees camping in the forests within the state of emergency zone.
- ‘Silent Land’, directed by Agnieszka Woszczyńska, 2021;
A couple rents a holiday home on a sunny Italian island. On site, they discover that the villa of their dreams falls short of their expectations while the island suffers from a water shortage. The arrival of a worker hired to repair the pool – an African migrant – will start an unexpected chain of disturbing events. The seemingly harmonious marriage will witness the emergence of dark instincts and deeply hidden emotions.
- ‘In the Rearview’, directed by Maciej Hamela, 2023 – documentary;
The onset of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Millions have opted to abandon their most valuable belongings and get into a dusty van with foreign plates without a second thought. The car has travelled thousands of kilometres, serving various functions: waiting room, hospital, shelter and, above all, a space for confidences and confessions.
- ‘25 Years of Innocence. The Case of Tomek Komenda’, directed by Jan Holoubek, 2020
An action drama based on facts, telling the true story of Tomasz Komenda, a young man wrongfully sentenced to 25 years in prison for the rape and murder of a teenage girl. Having served 18 years, he was approached by prosecutors and a police officer determined to uncover the truth behind the prisoner’s enigmatic case.
- ‘Call Me Marianna’, directed by Karolina Bielawska, 2015 – documentary
Marianna is a forty-year-old attractive woman. She has left the people she loved. She brought her parents to court, because that was the only way she could change the entry in the birth certificate. And all that to change her gender. As it turned out, life had written a script no one expected, and the price of freedom and the femininity she had dreamed of was very high.
- ‘Forest’, directed by Lidia Duda, 2024 – documentary
Asia and Marek escaped to their paradise right after graduation – they bought an old house right on Poland’s eastern border in the Białowieża Forest. This is where their three children were born: Marysia, Ignacy and Franek. The children live their lives absorbed in nature and the forest is their second home – tamed and fear-free. One day, though, their forest changes. Strangers, Others emerge; freezing, often sick, hungry, lost... Refugees, unwanted both in Poland and in Belarus.
- ‘Three Colours. Red’, directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1994
He – a cynic and pessimist, full of bitter wisdom and rough charm, she – beautiful, good, trusting and ready to love; they fight and clash with each other, but at the same time are bound by their mutual longing. She awakens him to life, he – surprisingly – infects her with his faith in love. ‘Three Colours. Red’ received the César Award for music for Zbigniew Preisner, the Georges Melies Award for best French film, the Los Angeles Critics Award for best foreign film and a Golden Globe nomination in the same category.
- ‘Symphony of the Ursus factory’, directed by Jaśmina Wojcik, 2018
‘Symphony of the Ursus Factory’ is the result of an extraordinary five-year art and research project conducted with a community of former employees of the famous Ursus factory. It comprises a documentary, video art, and also choreography and experimental music.
- ‘Shreds’, directed by Beata Dzianowicz, 2022
The peace in the Paterok family is shattered by the illness of Gerard - the grandfather, who is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. The story of a devastating disease in ‘Shreds’ turns into a story about love and its duties. Beata Dzianowicz’s family drama is a beautiful, clever cinema honoured with three awards at the 47th Polish Film Festival in Gdynia.
- ‘To Paradise’, directed by Marta Szymanek, 2023 - short film
Borderland of the European Union. A seventeen year old Mila vegetates in the shadows of a family of smugglers. Tired of being a living zombie, she decides to end it all. On the sidelines, in a forest scenery, she is trying to gas herself in a car. Everything gets complicated when on her way to the paradise suddenly a Syrian refugee emerges. A young and relentless man, in stark contrast to the girl, fights tooth and nail for survival. The film is the director’s debut.
- ‘Silent Trees’, directed by Agnieszka Zweifka, 2024 – documentary
Runa, a sixteen year old Kurd, has fled Iraq to protect herself from ISIS attacks. Together with her family, she got stuck on the Polish-Belarusian border, but she finally managed to enter the Polish territory. She had to grow up in a blink of an eye, though, as after her mother’s death she has become the head of the family. Now, she must take care of her four younger brothers and her father who is unable to cope with the accumulating difficulties. The camera accompanies the family’s uncertain fate, but the foreground is dedicated to a portrait of ordinary, but at the same time extraordinary teenager. We get to know her better through animated drawings she creates.
Community:
- ‘The Balcony Movie’, directed by Paweł Łoziński, 2021 – documentary
Can anyone be the protagonist of a film? Can the world be encapsulated in a single frame? Director Pawel Łoziński observes people over his balcony. Residents of the neighbourhood, or random visitors, ordinary passers-by. The author engages, asks questions and talks about how they manage their lives.
- ‘Next to Nothing’, directed by G. Dembowski, 2023;
A group of farmers are staging a protest outside the home of an MP who has voted against their interests, although he had promised otherwise. At the same time, the dead body of one of the local farmers is discovered. The protest leader, Jarek, is suspected by all, even though the deceased was his closest friend. The man embarks upon his own investigation.
- ‘The Pawn Shop’, directed by Łukasz Kowalski, 2022 – documentary
A moving story, packed with madcap humour, about people who struggle to survive while helping those more in need. Jola and Wiesiek make up a couple of eccentric businessmen from Bytom. Together with their three employees, they run what is probably the largest pawnshop in Europe.
- ‘In Ukraine’, directed by Tomasz Wolski, P. Pawlus, 2023 – documentary
Amidst an unprecedented war at the borders of the European Union, filmmakers Piotr Pawlus and Tomasz Wolski venture deep into bomb-ravaged Ukraine to record the new sense of everyday life of its people.
- ‘Fears’, directed by Łukasz Gutt, Łukasz Ronduda, 2021
Daniel has gained the respect of the village community when he courageously stands up to fight for its interests. When his teenage friend can no longer endure homophobic attacks and commits suicide, Daniel urges the people of the village to hold a communal Stations of the Cross in memory of the victim. A fact-based, heart-wrenching story of a homosexual artist raised in the countryside and heavily involved in the Catholic Church.
- ‘Struggle, Love and Work’, directed by Piotr Dumała, 2009 – animated short film
Dumała combined his plaster tile technique, pastel drawing and computer animation in this striking impression. The film premiered on a monumental wall in the so-called Quarter of Four Temples during the ninth edition of Wrocław’s New Horizons Festival, crowning its author’s retrospective.
- ‘Corpus Christi’, directed by Małgorzata Szumowska, 2015
A cynical prosecutor and his anorexic daughter try, each in their own way, to cope after the tragic death of a loved one. When one day the girl’s therapist Anna announces to them that the deceased had contacted her from the afterlife and has a message for them, they are forced to reconsider on their views on life and death.
- ‘Polish Prayers’, directed by Hanna Nobis, 2023 – documentary
A young radical Catholic who was brought up with conservative values tries to live up to his ideas. The reality versifies his views.
Sisterhood:
- ‘The Silent Twins’, directed by Agnieszka Smoczyńska
The true story of June and Jennifer Gibbons – black twins who, as children, turned silent to the outside world. At the same time, in the privacy of their room, they were engaged in a creative literary dialogue, but over time their relationship devolved into a toxic relationship – endangering both them and those around.
- ‘Anxiety’, directed by Sławomir Fabicki, 2023
Two sisters embark upon an emotional journey. Through laughter and tears, joy and anger, down to a grand finale that is destined to settle the fate of one of them.
- ‘The Lure’, directed by Agnieszka Smoczyńska, 2015
Two young mermaids walk out onto the banks of the Vistula River. They fling themselves into the passion and nightlife of 1980s Warsaw, yet their genuine selves refuse to be forgotten.
- ‘Feast of Fire’, directed by Kinga Dębska, 2023
Sisters are struggling with their own bodies. One, fuelled by ambition, seeks the limits of her potential; for the other, the body is a prison. One believes that ballet will protect her from the memories. The other attentively observes the world from the balcony, seeing and hearing more.
- ‘Angels of Sinjar’, directed by Hanna Polak, 2022 – documentary
Hanifa and Saeed hardly survived the hell that ISIS inflicted upon the Yazidi religious and ethnic minority. When Hanifa’s younger sisters are captured by the Islamic State, the protagonist wants to track them down and bring them home.
- ‘The Herd’, directed by Monika Kotecka, Karolina Poryzała, 2021 – documentary
A story of an amateur girls’ volleyball team that takes on the challenge of entering the sporting world of professionals. However, the players are not aware of the sacrifices entailed in this decision.
- ‘3 geNARRATIONS’ directed by Paulina Ziółkowska, 2021 – animation film
The film tells the story of a family of three women: a daughter, a mother and a grandmother. The story begins with the birth of the daughter’s child. Soon after, the father runs away. Only that the father is the husband of the mother, not the daughter with a newborn child. His desertion prompts the veritable flood of questions, conjecture and speculation...
- ‘My Old Gals’, directed by Natasza Parzymies, 2023 – short film
Sophie and Ania are two full-of-energy senior women. The years of wildness are now behind them – or maybe not yet? They haven’t seen each other for half a century. Each followed their own path. Now they meet again and embark on a journey together like Thelma and Louise to struggle their lives and dreams. Or is all already lost?
Detailed information about the entire international cultural programme of the Polish Presidency can be found on the website run by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute: https://poland2025eu.culture.pl/.