Celluloid Solidarity: Contemporary Polish Filmmakers on Unity in their Work.

The podcast series is part of the project Solidarity on Screen – Polish Presidency Film Review, dedicated to the promotion of Polish films with a solidarity theme and their creators.

Celluloid Solidarity consists of 5 podcasts – narrative monologues created on the basis of in-depth interviews with the most interesting directors from the list of films of the Solidarity on Screen program.

The invited filmmakers are among the most important contemporary Polish filmmakers, recognized and awarded at numerous film festivals. In interviews, the filmmakers had the opportunity to talk about their working methods, their films and what solidarity means to them.

The announcer of the program is Nikola Radić – a prominent Serbian film critic, essayist, author, and translator. The statements of the protagonists are accompanied by his commentary, allowing a better understanding of the context of the creation of the work and drawing attention to the qualities of the films, relevant from the point of view of a non-Polish viewer.

The podcast series was created by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute as part of the foreign cultural program of the Polish Presidency of the Council in the European Union 2025.

The Celluloid Solidarity podcast promotion will take place within the Beldocs Festival on May 23 at Sprat, Cetinjska 15, starting at 7 PM.

Participants:
Hana Nobis, director of Polish Prayers
Zuzanna Solakiewicz, director of The Soil
Monika Proba, podcast producer
Hanna Polak, director of Angels of Sinjar

Moderator: Nikola Radić, podcast host

Episode Description

ENVIRONMENTAL SOLIDARITY – The Soil / Ziemia / Zemlja, dir. Zuzanna Solakiewicz

As noted in the film’s promotional materials, The Soil is “a feminist documentary musical that surprises with a fresh approach to the topic of rural women.” In the conversation with director Zuzanna Solakiewicz, we ask about the continuity of tradition and its contemporary value, as well as the return to folk culture. We explore the therapeutic role of traditional songs, the everyday lives of rural women past and present, and broader social contexts. We are also interested in her perspective through the lens of her personal experience as someone who has lived in the Polish countryside for years. The ideas of solidarity resonate on multiple levels – not only solidarity with nature embraced by previous generations, but also the creation of community and a sense of safety rooted in belonging to tradition and shaping daily life in harmony with the eternal rhythm of nature. We also discuss Ewa Grochowska, the main character of the film – a singer who becomes a guide through the world of musical heritage and beyond.

HISTORICAL SOLIDARITY – “Scarborn / Kos” dir. Pavel Mašlona

The award-winning, critically and audience acclaimed ‘Scarbon’ is the only feature film representative of its genre in the Celluloid Solidarity podcast. Director Paweł Maślona builds the narrative around the figure of Tadeusz Kościuszko on the eve of the uprising, but the real protagonist of the film is the character of the illegitimate son of nobility Ignacy, who tries at all costs to prove his descent and, consequently, his rightful place in his father’s will. We talk to Paweł Maślona about the genesis of the film, the process it went through from idea to production, the breaking down of pathos in historical films and how current world political events make the Kosciuszko western a mirror for contemporary fears and tensions. We also ask about what a film set in Polish reality can offer a foreign audience.

COMMUNITY – „Polish Prayers / Prawy chłopak / Poljske molitve”, dir. Hana Nobis

In her film Hanna Nobis created a character of unprecedented sensitivity and complexity. The figure of Antek, overcoming a difficult and unexpected – also for himself – path from right-wing conservatism to metropolitan liberalism, becomes a pretext for a conversation about building a system of values and the circumstances that may influence this process, the formation of maturity, loyalty, and solidarity towards a group of friends, family and, finally, towards oneself. The episode also focuses on the collaboration between the documentary filmmaker and the protagonist and the years-long process of building mutual trust. We also ask whether the director’s private experiences influenced the direction of the film script or the highlighting of certain events.

SISTERHOOD – „Angels of Sinjar / Anioły z Sindżaru / Anđeli iz Sindžara”, dir. Hana Polak

In this episode the acclaimed documentary filmmaker Hanna Polak talks about her latest film, the harrowing documentary ‘Angels of Sinjar’, about the massacre of the Yazidi minority by ISIS. Polak centres her story around two characters: Hanifa and Saeed, juxtaposing – in her own words – the female and male experience of suffering resulting from the loss of family and witnessing genocide. The director, known for her exceptionally long documentation process (she can accompany her characters for up to a dozen years), discusses about her working methods, the emotions that accompany her during the filming of extremely difficult scenes, the moments when she turns off the camera and her perception of her role as a documentary director. In the episode, we also ask Hanna Polak about whether and what impact the making of the film had on the fate of its protagonists, and about educating the wider ‘Western’ world about tragic events that often find little media attention.

HUMAN-TO-HUMAN SOLIDARITY – „In The Rearview / Skąd dokąd / Odakle dokle” dir. Maćej Hamela

‘In the Rearview’ is the story of the ongoing war in Ukraine from the perspective of the van driver and film director Maciej Hamela. A few days after Russia’s attack on Ukraine, Hamela set off with humanitarian aid for people affected by the war, transporting them from Ukraine to Poland. Dozens of them became characters in the documentary, bearing witness to the first days of the attack on their country. In the episode, we talk to Maciek Hamela about how the film helped and continues to raise funds to help those affected by the war, the ethics of getting footage for the film, and finally how to combine the demanding roles of a director, producer, volunteer driver, logistics manager, and first contact person for those in need of help. We also ask about the memories of the film’s premiere in Ukraine and the emotions that accompanied the event, as well as the further fate of the characters and subsequent meetings with them.