”Sati is the traditional Hindu practice of a widowed wife being immolated on the funeral pyre of her husband.
This documentary of sorrow and rage tells the story of Olga Morawska, the wife of celebrated mountaineer Piotr Morawski. The film draws parallels between the solitude of the climber and the solitude of the bereaved whilst posing questions about the sacrifices we make in marriage and the choices that shape our lives and the lives of those around us.
The film chronicles Morawski’s ascent on Ama Dablam and Morawska’s poignant testimony recorded within weeks of her husband’s death.
The documentary premiered at the Krakow Film Festival, and was under the patronage and festival care of the Krakow Film Foundation. The effect of this cooperation was the participation of the film in over 20 festivals in Poland and in the world, among others at the Youth and Film Festival in Koszalin, Doc Aviv in Tel Aviv, BCN Sports Film in Barcelona, AFI Docs in Washington, World Mountain Documentary Festival in Shanghai , IMMF in the Czech Republic, „Cinema Verite” International Documentary Film Festival in Iran, or International Mountain Film Festival, in Kathmandu.
The film received not only favorable reviews but also awards: the Golden Gentiana at the Mountain Film Festival in Trento, the „Connexion Jury” award at the Autrans festival and the award for the Best Directing at the Al Jazeera Documentary Film Festival in Qatar.
”In declining communist Poland, in Gdańsk Orunia, then called the "district of flying knives", two young boys set up pirate television.
They want to fulfill their dreams of fame, money and beautiful women, while their reality is not too rosy. Boguś deals in cassettes, Sebastian is formally unemployed. One day, due to a lack of knowledge of the basics of television technology, they accidentally play German porn, which is watched by the entire district.
The embarrassing event gives rise to the first independent local television. Boguś and Sebastian gain respect and recognition. Money ceases to be a problem. However, great success attracts the attention of local mafiosis. Involved in business and politics, friends must decide whether, in an era of capitalism exploding, it is worth investing in something more than friendship .
The screenplay by Elżbieta Benkowska was created with financial support from the funds of the Marshal of the Pomeranian Voivodeship and thanks to a script grant from the Polish Film Institute. In 2019, it received a special award in the ScriptPro competition and is currently being developed as part of the ScriptEast program.
”A woman and a man walk down a beach, dragging a sled filled with luggage. At first sight, they look like polar explorers.
It turns out that they are a couple of amateurs. They are trying to save their relationship. They walk down a Baltic Sea beach in the middle of winter.
How did they arrive at this spot?
After yet another fight and an attempt to break up, Janek buys a sled. They decide to walk together on a trek along the Baltic Sea. Should it work, they will stay together forever. If it doesn’t work, they will part ways on the beach and will never again resume the subject.
On this narrow patch of sand between the woods and the sea, they go through everything that a marriage needs to endure. Betrayal, fear, mutual humiliation, loneliness, doubt, revelation, acts of courage, care, false exits and enters, disappointed hopes, acts of tenderness, passion and desire.
They make up the rules. The rules of the trip are easier than the ones in everyday life, which allows the characters to discover their dynamics. Every rule can be broken, after all. What’s left at the end is the feeling that the other person matters.
The screenplay of Maria Zbąska was appreciated by the Polish Film Institute and received funding for the development of the project.
