Polish Film Festival Sydney returns to Palace Norton Street this spring with a strong line-up of critically acclaimed films. The 2020 programme brings eight Australian premieres, showcasing new films from established directors alongside three feature debuts.

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Two special screenings of multi-award winning Oscar nominated film by Jan Komasa will prelude this year's Festival. Starring Bartosz Bielenia, a major screen discovery, CORPUS CHRISTI is a remarkable tale of a charismatic young ex­-convict falsely posing as a priest.

 

The Festival opens on Sunday 25 October with one of the most expensive Polish film productions of all time, an epic history drama THE LEGIONS by Dariusz Gajewski (Strange Heaven), about the heroic struggle of 1914-1916 Polish Legions to win independence from Tsarist Russia.

 

Closing the Festival is the Australian premiere of CHARLATAN, fascinating biopic by the three time Oscar nominee Agnieszka Holland (Mr.Jones, Spoor, Europa Europa) of a Czech healer gifted with exceptional abilities who cured thousands of people with plant-based remedies. The main role is played by Ivan Trojan, widely hailed to be one of the greatest Czech actors of all time.

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Another highlight of the programme is the all-star VALLEY OF THE GODS from visionary director Lech Majewski (The Garden of Earthly Delights), with John Malkovich, Josh Harnett (Black Hawk Down), Bérénice Marlohe (Skyfall), Keir Dullea (2001: A Space Odyssey) and John Rhys-Davies (Lord of the Rings trilogy).  A cross between fantasy and sci-fi takes the viewers on a surreal journey between three interweaving stories to illustrate the clash between the traditions of ancient civilizations and the modern high-tech world of the super rich.

 

Overflowing with jazz is ICARUS. THE LEGEND OF MIETEK KOSZ by Maciej Pieprzyca (Life Feels Good), a drama inspired by the true story of blind piano prodigy, Mietek Kosz, starring brilliant Dawid Ogrodnik with music by one of the most acclaimed Polish jazz pianists and music composers Leszek Możdżer.

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The 2020 edition is organised with a Covid Safety Plan in place and appropriate measures are taken to ensure the Festival is as safe as possible. In line with NSW grovernment restrictions seats are limited and sessions may sell out quickly. Due to unusual circumstances caused by COVID-19 we reluctantly reserve the right to change program without notice, cancel selected screenings or the whole event. Please read Festival T&C here. 

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We hope you will enjoy the films. Please take a look at the program below and find out more about the films.