Masters of Polish Animation

Polish animated film has always held a strong position on the international stage, as evidenced by numerous awards at the most prestigious festivals. In the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, animation was dominated by figures such as Jan Lenica, Walerian Borowczyk, Witold Giersz, Daniel Szczechura, Mirosław Kijowicz, Kazimierz Urbański, Ryszard Czekała, Julian Józef Antonisz, Jerzy Kucia, and Zbigniew Rybczyński. Later, artists like Piotr Dumała, Tomasz Bagiński, Dorota Kobiela, and Mariusz Wilczyński carried the tradition forward. The Polish school of animation has been – and still is – held in as high regard worldwide as the “proper” Polish Film School, associated with Andrzej Wajda, Andrzej Munk, Jerzy Kawalerowicz, and their successors – Krzysztof Kieślowski, Agnieszka Holland, and Paweł Pawlikowski. From the fifty master animators featured in the book Anima. Masters of Polish Animation, we have selected Daniel Szczechura for a retrospective presentation at this year’s festival. He is not only a classic of Polish animation but also of global stature. Szczechura’s films form a unique chronicle of a “true man,” for whom the act of creation is more of a hobby than a profession – much like life itself.

This section is curated by Jerzy Armata.