Political extremes
24 films
Ai Weiwei's Turandot
dir. Maxim Derevianko
dok2025
When a world-renowned artist and activist embarks upon the project of staging a classic opera, there is no doubt that it will be a revolutionary interpretation. By addressing the refugee crisis or the war in Ukraine, Ai Weiwei once again proves to be an artist who believes that art can influence reality.
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The next screenings
An Orange from Jaffa
dir. Mohammed Almughanni
fab2023
A few kilometres from Jerusalem, the Hizma checkpoint. There has been tension here for decades. Mohammed, a young Palestinian with a temporary Polish identity card, tries to get through the Israeli checkpoint. A succession of drivers refuse to give him a lift. Farouk, a taxi driver agrees.
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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 their Time (Kind van de Tijd)
dir. Huibert van Wijk
dok2024
In the 1970s, many Dutch families adopted children from Indonesia. Tim is one of them, but despite good intentions, something went wrong. Today, the protagonist resents his adoptive father for taking him to Europe. We witness a family psychodrama, which is recorded by Tim’s brother, the director of this film.
Read moreDear Leo Sokolosky (Drogi Leo Sokolosky)
dir. Weronika Szyma
anim2024
A young girl writes a letter to Leo Sokolosky, a man who was in the Ansbach labour camp together with her great-grandfather. In the film, the past is mixed with the present and animated images are juxtaposed with photographs from the family archives creating a record of an intimate conversation, no longer with the addressee of the letter but with her great-grandfather.
Read moreDon't Forget to Remember
dir. Ross Killeen
dok2024
A hopeful and reflective story about closeness, passing, change and the role of art that extends beyond galleries. A popular street art artist, Asbestos, faces the slow passing of his mum, who has Alzheimer’s disease. Using his art, he takes to the streets of Dublin to talk about memory.
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Fear (Strach)
dir. Robert Zawadzki
fab2025
Jola lives in Podlasie, close to the border with Belarus. Her son Marek works in the Border Guard combing the forests in search of immigrants illegally crossing the border. Jola is a taxi driver and wants to stay out of it, but one day, when her car breaks down, she is forced to confront her own convictions.
Read moreFission (Spaltung)
dir. João Pedro Prado, Anton Yaremchuk
dok2025
Are nuclear power plants more of a threat or rescue for us? The documentary presents the hot topic of nuclear power, setting it in different places and contexts, both global and local. The film breaks it down into voices – sometimes very serious but on other occasions eccentric and funny.
Read moreIn the Veins (We krwi)
dir. Maciej Tyburski
dok2025
It was intended as a film about Józef Lewartowski – a Jew, communist and an organiser of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Unexpectedly, it turns into a portrait of his great-grandson Joseph, a Parisian who, in an attempt to understand the history of the resistance movement in his family, begins to co-create it.
Read moreLetters from Wolf Street (Listy z Wilczej)
dir. Arjun Talwar
dok2025
A street in downtown Warsaw. An Indian immigrant filmmaker seeks to overcome the boundaries between himself and an anxiety-ridden country. He uncovers hidden stories, and shared longing, revealing a kaleidoscopic portrait of Polish society.
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New Beginnings (Les Recommencements)
dir. Vivianne Perelmuter, Isabelle Ingold
dok2025
Al, a resident of California’s Yurok reserve, decides to embark on a long journey. Due to an environmental catastrophe, it is becoming increasingly difficult for him to engage in fishing and the demons of war are still swirling in his head. Will a reunion with his former brothers-in-arms enable him to regain his equilibrium?
Read moreNice Girls Don't Ask
dir. Jan Krawitz
dok2025
The 1950s in America were the time when schools were flooded with educational films aiming to shape exemplary female behaviour. This story, composed of excerpts from such films, is not only a look at the past ideals of femininity but also a bitter reflection on their contemporary echoes.
Read morePaleontology Lesson
dir. Sergei Loznitsa
dok2025
More than a year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the war is still going on in the streets, but at Kyiv’s Museum of Natural History children can forget about it for a while. Under Sergei Loznitsa’s watchful eye, they are transported to the world from millions of years ago – free from the reality of war.
Read morePray for Our Sinners
dir. Sinead O'Shead
dok
Sinead O’Shea, an Irish film director and journalist, returns to her hometown, Navan, to expose the abuse that took place in Catholic institutions there. In her confrontational documentary, she talks to people who experienced bullying and cruelty from teachers and nuns in the 1960s and 1970s.
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Reenactment (Rekonstrukcja)
dir. Marcin Strauchold
fab2025
Anka ends up at a historical re-enactment camp because of her boyfriend. She tries to find her own place in the community, however, it turns out that historical prejudice against women is surprisingly valid. The participants with dedication perform roles from the past, but at the same time, there is a contemporary social game going on between them.
Read moreSilver
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
Surviving the Death Commitee
dir. Nima Sarvestani
dok2025
One watches this film like a gripping thriller, and at times like a courtroom drama. An elaborate plot is unfolding before our eyes: a variety of efforts are made to capture and try a man who was co-responsible for the massacre of thousands of Iranian political prisoners in the 1980s.
Read moreThe Big Chief (Wielki szef)
dir. Tomasz Wolski
dok2025
He worked for the Soviet intelligence, faked his collaboration with the Gestapo and had to explain himself for it for the rest of his life. In Poland, in 1968, he was put under house arrest as a victim of the anti-Semitic campaign. Employing archival footage in a creative way, the film reveals the remarkable biography of Leopold Trepper.
Read moreThe Granny & Fishes (Poorzal)
dir. Maria Mavati, Ehsan Farokhi Fard, Ehsan Farokhifard
dok2024
An elderly woman lives in a desolate area ravaged by droughts near Lake Hamun in Iran. She is the only inhabitant of one of the villages evacuated due to the lack of water. Every day, she walks on the sun-cracked ground, collects dried fish and waits for life to return to the area.
Read moreThe Man Who Could Not Remain Silent (Čovjek Koji Nije Mogao Šutjeti)
dir. Nebojsa Slijepcevic
fab2024
February 27, 1993, Strpci, Bosnia and Herzegovina. A passenger train from Belgrade to Bar is stopped by paramilitary forces in an ethnic cleansing operation. As they haul off innocent civilians, only one man out of 500 passengers dares to stand up to them. This is the true story of a man who could not remain silent.
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The Passenger Andrzej Munk (Pasażer Andrzej Munk)
dir. Michał Bielawski
dok2025
This documentary is dedicated to Andrzej Munk, a leading figure of the Polish Film School. Based on unique archival materials, it tells the story of a man immersed in history, his artistic evolution and the emotions that accompanied it.
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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
The Town That Drove Away (Miasto, które wyjechało)
dir. Natalia Pietsch, Grzegorz Piekarski
dok2025
The Turkish town of Hasankeyf lies on the Tigris River and has an ancient history. The construction of a huge dam, which began in 2006, has led to its submersion and the displacement of thousands of people. Following the two protagonists, we watch the destruction of the city and the accompanying socioeconomic transformation process.
Read moreTrains (Pociągi)
dir. Maciej J. Drygas
dok2024
Can a train serve as a metaphor for human destiny? The documentary by Maciej J. Drygas is a historical railway journey through 20th-century Europe composed exclusively of the footage found in archives around the world.
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