Socio-political Introduction to Polish Cinema 2102-ERASMUS-SIPC

 The Roots of Polish Cinema (1890-1918)
o Polish impact on the development of cinematography and television.
o Polish culture and society at the turn of the century.
 Cinematography of Reborn Poland (1918-1939)
o Emergence of the Polish film industry.
o Between entertainment and serious politics: dominating genres.
o Cinema as a reflection on cultural and ethnic reality in inter-war Poland.
o Movie: Piętro wyżej [Level Up] (1937).
o People: Pola Negri, Eugeniusz Bodo.
 Yiddish Cinema in Poland (up to 1939)
o Yiddish culture in inter-war Poland.
o The Jewish film industry.
o Stars and starlets of Yiddish cinema in Poland.
o Jewish moviemakers migrating from Poland to the USA.
o Movie: Dybuk [The Dybbuk] (1937).
o People: Joseph Green, Aleksander Ford, Henry Shapiro.
 After the war (1945-1956)
o Rebuilding the Polish film industry.
o Memories of World War 2.
o Łódź Film School.
o Dominating motifs. Censorship starts. Socialist realism.
o Film as a tool of communist propaganda.
o Movies: Zakazane piosenki [Banned Songs] (1946), Piątka z ulicy Barskiej [Five Boys from Barska Street] (1953)
o Focus on: Leonard Buczkowski, Wanda Jakubowska.
 Polish Film School (1955-1965)
o Political thaw in Poland and the emergence of Polish Film School.
o From socialist realism to inspiration drawn from Italian neorealism.
o Between historical patriotism and psychological existentialism.
o Recreation and dismantlement of national myths.
o Movies: Kanał [Kanal] (1957), Popiół i diament [Ashes and Diamonds] (1958).
o People: Andrzej Wajda, Andrzej Munk, Jerzy Kawalerowicz.
 New Wave (1960-1968)
o “The Third Wave Polish Cinema”.
o The end of the October thaw.
o Political limitations on artistic freedom.
o Focus on normal and everyday life.
o Movies: Niewinni czarodzieje [Innocent Sorcerers] (1960), Nóż w wodzie [Knife in the water] (1962).
o People: Roman Polański, Jerzy Skolimowski.
 The Rise of Historic and Costume Films (1960s/1970s)
o The political decline of the Polish Film School.
o Historic and costume cinema as a tool of political propaganda.
o Focus on masterpieces of Polish literature.
o Role of grandiose staging.
o Movies: Krzyżacy [The Knights of the Cross] (1960), Manuskrypt znaleziony w Saragossie [The Manuscript Found in Saragossa] (1964).
o People: Wojciech Jerzy Has, Jerzy Hoffman.
 Cinema of Moral Anxiety (1976-1981)
o Directors’ revolt of 1975.
o Moving away from historical topics in favor of psychological aspects of everyday life in People’s Republic of Poland.
o Growing interest in ordinary people and small cities and the countryside.
o Unity of time and action.
o Movies: Człowiek z marmuru [Man of Marble] (1977), Aktorzy prowincjonalni [Provincial Actors] (1978), Człowiek z żelaza [Man of Iron] (1981).
o People: Krzysztof Zanussi, Agnieszka Holland.
 Polish Popular Cinema (1980s)
o The Martial Law of 1981 and the end of artistic freedom.
o Political bans on selected movies.
o Emergence of popular cinema dominated by the comedy genre.
o Movies: Miś [Mis] (1980), Seksmisja [Sexmission] (1984).
o People: Stanisław Bareja, Juliusz Machulski.
 Polish Cinema in Transition (1980s/1990s)
o A new socio-political and cultural reality.
o Loosening of censorship.
o Decentralization of the film industry.
o New motifs and genres.
o Metaphysical cinema.
o Movies: Przypadek [Blind Chance] (1987), Psy [Pigs] (1992).
o People: Krzysztof Kieślowski.
 Contemporary Polish Cinema 1 (Martyrdom and Patriotism)
o Cinema as a form of national psychotherapy.
o Reviving the historical topics that were forbidden by communist censorship.
o Polish cinema as a tool of historical politics.
o Main topics and their historical and political background.
o Movies: Katyń [Katyn] (2007), Czarny czwartek [Black Thursday] (2011).
o People: Ryszard Bugajski, Antoni Krauze.
 Contemporary Polish Cinema 2 (Mirroring Society)
o In search of the new Polish soul.
o Grotesque and surrealism as a metaphor for Polish society.
o Redefining national virtues and flaws.
o Movies: Dzień świra [The Day of the Wacco] (2002), Wesele [The Wedding] (2004).
o People: Wojciech Smarzowski, Marek Koterski.
 Contemporary Polish Cinema 3 (Re-negotiating Identities)
o New Polish cinema in a new cultural and political reality.
o Renegotiating cinema's social framework.
o New motifs and perspectives.
o The global reach of selected Polish movies.
o Movies: Ida [Ida] (2013), Miasto 44 [Warsaw’44] (2014).
o People: Paweł Pawlikowski, Jan Komasa.