The Arena of Life

This film takes the audience to the centre for the blind in Laski. We try to get to know the reality of blind children - full of sounds, smells and carefully studied shapes. Carefully, with their fingers, they check the physiognomy of living animals and then recreate them from clay. Thanks to the aesthetics of the film, seemingly simple activities performed by the wards of the establishment gain a deeper, symbolic dimension.

A ‘paradocumental’ by Dziworski & Rybczynski.

A candid, fly-on-the-wall BBC television documentary portrait of Russian Nationalist politician, Vladimir Zhirinovsky. The film shows the leader on a cruise surrounded by two hundred supporters getting plenty of media attention in New York. We are left with the nagging question: to what extent is Zhirinovsky really dangerous? To take that further, to what extent are populist politicians truly dangerous?

A 'creative documentary' about an Austrian skier who was known during the 70s. Examined from a biographical / visual standpoint.

The film is a portrait of Jerzy Orłowski, an armless graphic artist. Impressionistic scenes present the protagonist in various situations: when he has to deal with everyday chores, when he jumps into water, skis and draws. Even the simplest activity requires struggle, resilience and outstanding fitness from him. Many takes are in slow motion, contemplating the smallest detail, which the director is so skilfully able to bring out.

Franek, a petty criminal and gambler, befriends Rysio, who performs inspections of meat plants. Rysio suspects wrongdoings at the slaughterhouse. Franek, despite his age, cannot find a place in life, with nothing achieved and, what's more, still not knowing what to do.

Paul Pawlikowski's award-winning documentary on life behind Serbian lines in Bosnia. The film observes the roots of the extreme nationalism which has torn apart a country and provides a chilling examination of the dangerous power of ancient nationalist myths.

Jan and Maria become a couple in 1930s Kraków. Jan tries to get a job as an architect but fails. They struggle with poverty and extreme humiliation. Their attempt to survive leads to a desperate crime.

This short impression was made from the film footage which had not been used in the film ‘Hommage à Beksiński’ screened at the Film Festival in Cannes in 1986 and is a product of one artist’s fascination with another artist, outstanding painter Zdzisław Beksiński. It is an attempt to add extra meaning to well-known works by Beksiński using the means of expressions applied in the film. The challenge for the viewer is to discover references.

A documentary about ice hockey from the point of view of the hockey puck.

Another film about a sports discipline that removes the barrier between the spectator and the participants of the competition. The scenes of ski jumps have gone down in the history of cinema. All of them were made by Adam Krzysztofi-ak, an Olympic Winner.

Boxing match. Full stands. The fight is about to begin. The hall is filled with a bustling audience. We see fans: men, women and children. Everyone is craning their necks with interest to get a better view of the fight. Their faces show emotions of tension, joy, disappointment.

A man goes through his solitary morning routine, then has an accident.

These striking observations of a skiing competition for children in Zakopane make, at the same time, a little treaty about growing up. Innocent play in snow soon changes into a true competition where only the best can win. Adults get involved in the rivalry between children forcing them to continue gruelling efforts. The sound of a ticking stopwatch is a perfect complement to the story. At the end of the film, one of the boys rebels and leaves the run. He is not interested in the world of adults yet.

Szapito is one of the best and most beautiful films about circus artists in the history of Polish documentary cinema. The filmmaker managed to persuade the retired artists of the Szapito group to go back to the circus arena. The spectator knows that the life, characters and their acts recorded on the film stock will soon be gone forever. It is with sympathy and reverie that Dziworski observes this world fade away.

A film about the act of creation, in which the representation of the artist's different emotions and her relation to environment shows how the creative process develops to its end.