THREE POLISH FILMS NOMINATED FOR PRIX EUROPA AWARD
On October 17 in Berlin starts the festival Prix Europa, during which awards are given to the best European radio, television and Internet productions. In the television documentary film category, two Polish films are nominated for the award: "I am Kuba" by Åse Svenheim Drivenes and "Cabaret of death" by Andrzej Celiński, and in the section TV IRIS - "The Queen of Silence" by Agnieszka Zwiefka.
The festival Prix Europa started in 1987 on the initiative of the Council of Europe and European Cultural Foundation. Its aim is to promote and present as wide as possible as a spectrum of European radio, television and Internet productions. Today, the festival co-operates with 25 organisations from various countries, to mention only the European Parliament, European Broadcasting Union, and Polish Television. It is the place for meetings and exchanging views of film producers from entire Europe. This year's edition is held from 17 to 24 October.
This year, three Polish films are nominated for the Prix Europa Award in the television documentary film category. The first one is the Polish-Norwegian production "I am Kuba" by Åse Svenheim Drivenes. The film shows the story of Kuba (12 years old) and Mikołaj (8 years old), whose parents had to leave Poland in order to find work abroad. The film's protagonist, Kuba, has to grow up quickly and take care of his younger brother. However, the teenager gradually rejects the great responsibility, which fell on his shoulders. The family is forced to take important decisions.
The second film is "Cabaret of Death" by Andrzej Celiński. It is a story about artists of Jewish descent, who struggle for survival using the only weapon available to them - music, theatre and film creative work. They defend themselves against the Nazi apparatus of repression by jokes, cabaret performances, skits, performances, songs, concerts. They organise them in concentration camps and ghettos. They fight for their lives, but first and foremost - as they themselves emphasise - for their souls and dignity. A symbolic guide to the full of paradoxes, incredible events and dramatic clashes world of concentration camp cabaret artists, stars of Warsaw and Vilnius, actors, musicians and pre-war popular film-makers is the legendary character from Warsaw ghetto: the street jester Rubinstein.
The third film, which was honoured with the nomination for the prestigious award, is "The Queen of Silence" by Agnieszka Zwiefka. The film tells the story of deaf and mute girl, 10 year-old Denisa, who lives on an illegal gypsy encampment, but also the story of the place itself, threatened with eviction. Like other children on the encampment, Denisa has never been to school, she can neither read nor write, and lives in extremely difficult conditions, without running water and constant access to electricity. In addition, she is also laughed at by her peers, who call her "the deaf one" or "the silly one," rarely using her name. However, Denisa lives in her own world. Since she found a box with Bollywood films among the rubbish, she finds escape from the everyday reality in them.
More information about the nominations on the festival's website.