Polish Competition - set II

A story about a girl who wanted to escape her own fear, but accidentally traps herself together with it in a small cabin in the woods. Locked inside four walls, with no way out, she has to deal with hunger, cold and the fear of something that once wanted to hurt her... but now lies dead beside her.  

Joanna Płatek was born in 2001 in Poznań. In 2021, she graduated from the High School of Fine Arts in Poznań, after which she began studying animation at the University of Arts in Poznań. In particular, she is interested in the technique of animating sand under a camera and traditional drawing on paper.  

This poetic dialogue unfolds between a young girl and her deceased great-grandfather, intertwining images from a German town where he was sent to a work camp during World War II with a delicate narrative as the girl pens a letter. The past seamlessly blends with the present, and flashes of memory mix with moments of oblivion. Leo Sokolosky, the letter's intended recipient, is the ghost of her great-grandfather’s friend from the camp, serving as a mystical link between her world and his. The film explores questions about ideals in today’s world and expresses the longing for someone close who is no longer around. 

Weronika Szyma – animation director. Born in 1996 in Warsaw, Poland. A graduate of Masters degree in Animation at The Polish National Film School in Łódź. Author of short films, including "Blue" (2023), “Once upon a time in Israel” (2021) and “Lushfulness” (2020). Her films were selected and awarded at numerous film festivals around the world. Working mostly in analog media. Her works concentrate on feminism, body, lingustics, cultures and world conflicts. 

In the Wrocław Museum of Forensic Medicine You can find a peculiar exhibit, namely a hangman's noose made of locks of hair. The material for this macabre object was obtained by a series of assaults on a number of random women in a city's public transport. The animated short - ""Hairytale" is an attempt to tell the story of the creator (as well as a user of) this "work".  

Maciej Żuk graduated Fine Arts Academy in Wrocław in 2015. Since 2014 he works in the film industry as a 2d, and 3d animator, as well as compositing artist. When he has some time to spare, he delves in creating music, and 2d animated shorts.  

The film tells a story of a farewell between two close sisters, with a focus on the elder sister and her final moments before departure, capturing her reflections and deep connection to her sister and the homeland she is about to leave behind.  

An aspiring animator and film director, originally from Yerevan, now studying at Polish Lodz Film School. Passionate about storytelling and animation since early childhood.  

Elder man is looking for his wife, the Big Orange. 

Born in 1998, in Kraków, Poland. Got bachelor's degree in graphic design at Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. Right now studying animation at Film School in Łódź. Works as an illustrator and graphic designer.  

During the Christmas Eve dinner, the girl is confronted with criticism from her family, who doesn’t hold back in commenting on her personal life and diet. In response to societal pressure and the fear of loneliness, she forms an unusual bond with a peculiar companion, who becomes a part of her daily life. Soon, she meets a man who struggles with similar issues, and their relationship develops in an unexpected way.  

Joanna Szlembarska, a graduate of the Łódź Film School, specializes in stop-motion animation. The themes of her work revolve around anxiety and fear associated with relationships, presented in a minimalist, monochromatic aesthetic. 
Her film "Composition of Existing Experiences" gained recognition at international festivals such as ZINEBI in Spain, StopTrik in Slovenia, and Imaginaria in Italy, and 
was awarded the Animated Film Section Award of the Polish Filmmakers Association for Best Animation in Film. Her next film was created using the cut-out animation technique, broadening the spectrum of her artistic expression.  

A silent, sandy impression of a secret affair between two Catholic priests. Their affection blooms between one bed of strawberries and another, in a garden next to an Italian rectory. The animation in this film is done entirely in sand. The backgrounds are painted with black tea and ink. 

Niki is an animation student from Poland who makes films in digital hand-drawn and sand techniques. She writes her own stories and adapts them into animated impressions and comics.  

This is going to be a film about my mom...or rather what I would like to tell her 
A short humorous story about arguments, growing up and the relationship between mother and daughter.  

Agnieszka Popińska- Animator and short film director, born in 2001 in Wroclaw, Poland, currently student at polish national film school at animation department.