Films awarded at the 65th Krakow Film Festival
20 films
Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story
dir. Michael Mabbott, Lucah Rosenberg-Lee
dok2024
‘I was born but I never lived,’ says an African American R&B singer, who went into exile from the US to Canada in the late 1950s because of transphobia and racism. Using phone calls made just before Jackie Shane’s death, the filmmakers tell the story of her life in hiding and her coming out.
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Awards:Golden Heynal
Bloodline
dir. Wojciech Węglarz
dok2024
The story of a bison, separated from its herd by the wall on the Polish-Belarusian border, which unintentionally becomes a witness to the dramatic events taking place on both sides. The drama of the animal symbolically resonates with the drama of the people separated from their loved ones.
Read moreAwards:Golden Hobby-Horse
Child of Dust (Dziecko z pyłu)
dir. Weronika Mliczewska
dok2025
Sang was one of hundreds of thousands of children sired by American soldiers during the Vietnam War. Today, he would like to meet his biological father. The trip to the US means a lot to him, but when he meets his new family, nothing is as he expected.
Read moreAwards:Golden Hobby-Horse / Golden Horn / Special Award
The next screenings
Citizen-Inmate (Dar Band)
dir. Hesam Eslami
dok2025
In digitally supervised Tehran, the control system stops working as planned. Those who have been watched so far are taking over the gaze. Is it possible to regain power over one’s own life in the world full of cameras? A gripping documentary about rebellion in the age of surveillance.
Read moreAwards:Silver Dragon
Dance with Me, Dad (Zatańcz ze mną, tato)
dir. Małgorzata Goździk
dok2025
An adult daughter tries to get closer to her emotionally unavailable father. Their relationship reflects a broader conflict between two generations – the older one, unable to speak honestly about their feelings, and the younger one, which needs open dialogue.
Read moreAwards:Special Mention
Hunting (Qui part à la chasse)
dir. Lea Favre
anim2024
A young girl goes on a hunt - not for animals but for a perfect documentary shot. She learns how to be alert, invisible, ready to capture that one special moment, such as a romantic kiss, a unique gesture or a glint in the eye. Just when Lea thinks she has got her frame, she becomes a victim herself.
Read moreAwards:Silver Dragon / Special Award
It’s All Because of Her (To wszystko przez nią)
dir. Daria Kopiec
fab2025
Maria raises her introverted son alone. Kostek ignores her attempts at contact and their relationship seems frozen. Resorting to mystification and lies, Maria finds a way to reach him, but it will cost her dearly. 18+
Read moreAwards:Wyróżnienia
Look Homeward (Spójrz na dom swój)
dir. Artem Rachkelyuk
fab2025
When the war broke out in Ukraine, the parents sent Vlad and his sister to Poland to ensure their safety. They themselves remained in the conflict-torn country. Vlad is expected to look after his younger sister, but his thoughts constantly flee to his homeland and especially to his father, who has been called up to the army.
Read moreAwards:Golden Dragon / Golden Hobby-Horse
The next screenings
Nothing Else (Bez reszty)
dir. Jakub Prysak
fab2025
Wera is a young painter with a beautiful house immersed in greenery, overlooking a lake, a handsome husband who earns an excellent salary, a cuddly dog called Chagall and a brutal and incurable diagnosis. The couple must face the inevitability of her illness, but their reactions are extremely different.
Read moreAwards:Special Award
People & Things (Ludzie i rzeczy)
dir. Damian Kosowski
fab2024
Ukraine, 2028. The war is over and difficult issues need to be sorted out. Olena, with her daughter Kira and new partner Timur, arrives to collect the results of the DNA test confirming the death of her husband who went missing. During the procedure, the woman is overwhelmed by doubts.
Read moreAwards:Special Mention
Sammi, Who Can Detach His Body Parts
dir. Rein Maychaelson
fab2025
Sammy’s mother can’t get over the fact that her son has spent his entire life sharing his body with those in need. A hand, leg or eye – with his extraordinary ability to detach body parts, he has helped people in impossible situations. When there is nothing left to give away, the mother decides to get her son back.
Read moreAwards:Silver Dragon
Sanatorium
dir. Gar O'Rourke
dok
Welcome to Kujalnik, a famous spa resort near Odesa. Despite the holiday atmosphere and pleasant ambiance of the place, there is still a war going on nearby. A stay at the Black Sea sanatorium is a temporary return to normality and peace.
Read moreAwards:Special Award
The next screenings
Silver
dir. Natalia Koniarz
dok2025
Without this metal, there would be no modern technologies today. In the 21st century, there are still murderous working conditions in the Bolivian silver mines of Potosí, from which the profits are reaped by international corporations. The entire lives of people from this area revolve around mines, and the documentary is a raw observation of their daily routine.
Read moreAwards:Silver Horn / Nagrody specjalne
The next screenings
Tata
dir. Lina Vdovîi, Radu Ciorniciuc
dok2024
In this film, the global problem of invisible slavery meets a family story of violence. When a Moldovan journalist learns that her father, who works in Italy, is being abused and beaten by his employer, she arrives on the scene and tries to record the abuse using a hidden camera.
Read moreAwards:Silver Horn
Tears (Rozdarcia)
dir. Paulina Ziółkowska
anim2025
‘Tears’ is a collage animation in which countless possibilities intersect like tangled city streets. Different people, destinations, ideals of beauty – the protagonist has so many paths to choose from and so many decisions to make every day. She feels lost in the world full of questions waiting for her to answer.
Read moreAwards:Special Mention
The Gardener, the Buddhist & the Spy
dir. Håvard Bustnes
dok2025
Tycoons producing carcinogenic asbestos with impunity, activists fighting the global web of illicit connections and a man who was a double or perhaps even a triple agent – here is an investigative documentary whose protagonist continually eludes us.
Read moreAwards:Special Award
The Passion of Agnieszka (Pasja według Agnieszki)
dir. Wojciech Staroń
dok2025
A record of the most recent collaboration between legendary film editors, Agnieszka Bojanowska and Bogdan Dziworski – a duo that created some of the most important films in the history of Polish documentary cinema. Wojciech Staroń’s camera captures the behind-the-scenes of their difficult but extremely creative relationship.
Read moreAwards:Golden Hobby-Horse
The Pool or Death of a Goldfish (Basen albo śmierć złotej rybki)
dir. Daria Kopiec
anim2025
A metaphorical animation about growing up and the right to have one’s own opinion. The protagonist is like a goldfish – she fulfils her parents’ wishes and does not express her own needs. However, accumulated emotions begin to overwhelm her like water in a swimming pool. Should she drown in her own tears and unexpressed feelings or fight for freedom?
Read moreAwards:Golden Hobby-Horse
The next screenings
The Propagandist (De propagandist)
dir. Luuk Bouwman
dok2024
Why did Jan Teunissen, a distinguished Dutch filmmaker, become the ‘tsar of Nazi propaganda’ during World War II? Composed exclusively of archival footage, including many materials unknown so far, the film tells a story of the man who, ‘for the love of cinema’, began collaborating with the occupier.
Read moreAwards:Special Mention
World at Stake
dir. Susanna Flock, Adrian Jonas Haim, Jona Kleinlein
anim2025
Employing the style of popular video games, such as FIFA, PGA Tour and Dirt Rally, this animation tackles issues that go far beyond sports arenas. Each of the protagonists struggles not only with their rivals but also emotions, expectations and spectators, who constantly judge the players. Is this game about scoring points only?
Read moreAwards:Special Award
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