Jun
9
Łódź – the city of movies
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Łódź – the “promised land” of the nineteenth-century Polish capitalism and Mecca for the twentieth-century movie makers. After the crisis in the 90’s Łódź has resurrected as the city of moviemaking and an important cultural center in Europe owing to the efforts of many film producers and a number of festivals.
All over the world the word ‘Łódź’ is immediately associated with the famous film school, which is currently celebrating its sixtieth anniversary.
The school is housed in a neorenaissance palace located at 61Targowa 63 St, which is the former property of Oscar Kon. The National School of Film, which specialized in training film directors and cameramen, was founded in 1948. A year later a school for actors known as the National Acting School came into being. This was an experimental and pioneering project since Poland had had no tradition of training actors and directors. The authorities selected Łódź because Warsaw had been heavily ravaged during WWII. Later, the structure and organization of the Acting School was copied and proliferated in similar schools in Warsaw, Krakow, and Wrocław. The Film School, however, has remained unique on the national scale up to this day.
In 1958, the Leon Schiller National University of Film and Television came into existence as a merger of the two schools. Since the inception the university, popularly referred to as “filmówka”, has been surrounded by a mysterious aura, a legend created by famous students and graduates – it’s become an “art lab” that provides a fertile ground not only for the activities connected with film and theater but also music, literature, and painting.
The former students include winners at Cannes, Berlin, and American Oscars. The university has produced a number of magnificent film directors such as Andrzej Munk, Janusz Morgenstern, Andrzej Wajda, Roman Polański, Krzysztof Kieślowski, Krzysztof Zanussi, and Zbigniew Rybczyński. The 70’s were very prolific with a fine blend of actors, directors, and cameramen who are still active in film, TV, and theater, both in Poland and abroad.
Feature Films Studio located at Łąkowa St. in Łódź was a cradle of the Polish post-war cinematography, operating from 1945 to 1998. It had been the largest production studio in Poland for many years, making about 15 films and 40-60 TV episodes a year in the 60’s and 70’s. This was the place that had produced the first Polish feature film after WWII called Forbidden Songs (Zakazane Piosenki) by Leonard Buczkowski. The production took off in a modified sports hall in December of 1945. In 1953, the studio produced the first color film, Adventure in Marienstadt (Przygoda na Mariensztacie).
By the 90’s the film studio had produced nearly 600 feature movies and over 1000 TV episodes. The 90’s brought a crisis to the filmmaking industry, which was reflected in the studio’s performance. In 1992, the company ran a loss for the first time in its history. Due to its poor financial situation, the authorities decided to shut it down in 1998, preserving only the Film Center, which gathered the largest collection of costumes and props in Poland. The warehouses of the Film Center are filled with nearly 4000 various theatrical objects and thousands of costumes used in such productions as “The Doll”, “The Teutonic Knights”, “Stakes Larger Than Life”, “The Promised Land”, “Queen Bona”, and “King-size”.
The rest of the complex at Łąkowa St., including the Polish largest studio, has remained in the film industry. Today, the buildings are occupied by companies that provide services for movie makers, advertisers, and TV.
Łódź is also known for its achievements in animated films. The city is a home to Se-ma-for Studio, which was founded in 1947. It has produced over 1400 animated movies for both children and adults. The most successful productions include “Earflap Teddy Bear” (Miś Uszatek), “Adventures of Colargol the Bear” (Przygody misia Colargola), “Adventures of Filemon the Cat” (Przygody kota Filemona), “Magic Pencil” (Zaczarowany ołówek), and Oscar-winner “Tango” by Zbigniew Rybczyński. Apart from animation, the studio makes other genres e.g. poetic documentary “From the Abyss I call…”, which is based on the diaries of the children living in the Jewish Ghetto in Łódź during WWII.
The latest release “Peter and the Wolf” by Suzie Templeton produced in collaboration with British BreakThru films is very successful at various international festivals. It has won both Grand Prize and People’s Choice Award at Annecy Festival in France and 2008 Oscar in Best Animated Short.
The Polish capital of film can also boast a museum of cinematography. It is located in a nineteenth-century palace, which once belonged to Karol Scheibler, one of the Łódź richest manufacturers of German descent known as the “cotton king”.
The tranquil and subtle façade of the building stays in contrast with the richness of its interior. Well-preserved stuccowork, fireplaces, stoves, decorative paintings, wainscoting, upholstery, wallpapers, mosaics, floors, and stained glass
are the living proof of the history of the city and the history of the Polish cinematography as well. The interior of the palace was featured in several dozens movies including Andrzej Wajda’s masterpiece “The Promised Land”.
The museum of cinematography is a unique place that upholds the tradition of filmmaking in Łódź, while gathering a large collection of international movie productions at the same time. The visitors can see film settings of Polish super-productions such as the pagan temple from the setting of “Old Fable”. The museum is proud of possessing a nineteenth-century peepshow, which was featured in “Vabank” by Julisz Machulski, old cameras, optical gadgets, collection of posters from the 20’s and 30’s, and sketches of costumes and sceneries.
The city of movies is not only a landmark of history of cinematography, but also our contemporary life. The International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography CAMERIMAGE is the world’s largest and most recognized festival dedicated to the art of cinematography and moviemakers.
The festival focuses on the quality of pictures and their adequacy to the plot. The premise has become a very attractive alternative to other festivals. The awards recognize the greatest achievements in camerawork, which give the filmmakers a feeling of fulfillment and satisfaction from their work. The establishment helps the young artists and students to discover new artistic areas. Besides screenings, Camerimage organizes workshops and meetings with cinematographers.
CAMERIMAGE raises the prestige of the people standing anonymously behind rolling cameras. The profession was often perceived as purely technical, but the festival stresses the important role of the cameramen, who create the whole visual aspect of a film, which makes them artists to the same extent as actors and directors are.
David Lynch came to Łódź to see the festival. He became so fascinated with the city and its architecture that he used Łódź as the setting of his “Inland Empire”. David also became a co-owner of the old heat and power plant in Targowa St., which dates back to the Art Nouveau period. The artist wants to launch his own production company there.
“I was charmed by the factories and stocks, mysterious yards, narrow gates and corridors, and historical tenant houses in Łódź. They’re full of magic and energy that goes very well with my films”, said David Lynch.
Initiatives like this one can make the city regain its former glory and once again become the promised land for the Polish and foreign filmmakers.
Jun
9
Konkurs fotograficzny na festiwalu w Cieszynie
Filed Under Cieszyn Fim Festival | Comments Off
W konkursie może wziąćudziałkażdy posiadacz lub użytkownik aparatu fotograficznego.
By wziąćw nim udziałnależy wykonaćserięzdjęćpokazującąatmosferęfestiwalu “Wakacyjne Kadry”
- Cieszyn.Film.Festiwal.
Tematem fotografii mogąbyćoficjalne imprezy festiwalowe jak równieżkulisy festiwalu. Mogąto być
równieżsytuacje nie związane bezpośrednio z tąimpreząale mające miejsce w czasie trwania
festiwalu i dotyczące jej uczestników lub teżCieszynian.
Prace należy składaćw formie cyfrowej, niezależnie od tego, jakim aparatem (analogowym czy
cyfrowym) zostały zrobione.
Odbiór prac będzie następowałna specjalnym stanowisku komputerowym w punkcie informacji
turystycznej w poczekalni Urzędu Miasta Cieszyna. W celu ułatwienia przepisania zdjęćz różnych
aparatów cyfrowych na dysk komputera prosimy o zabranie ze sobąkabli USB.
Zgłoszenie przez autorów zdjęćdo konkursu przez jest jednoznaczne z wyrażeniem przez autora
zgody na publikacjędzieła na stronie internetowej Urzędu Miejskiego w Cieszynie.
Szczegóły w regulaminie.