„Kill it and leave this town” at the Ottawa and Melbourne festivals

The animated film „Kill it and leave this town” by Mariusz Wilczyński was included in the competition of the International Animation Festival in Ottawa and the International Film Festival in Melbourne. The picture is co-financed by the Polish Film Institute.

Mariusz Wilczyński’s full-length directorial debut is an autobiographical impression, a reminiscence of childhood images, in which the memories of his deceased parents and his hometown of Łódź come alive. Voices in the animation are given, among others, by  Krystyna Janda, Andrzej Chyra, Maja Ostaszewska and Małgorzata Kożuchowska.

Polish animation appreciated in the world

The film’s world premiere took place in the Encounters competition at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival. The film received a jury award in the main competition of the 44th Annecy International Animated Film Festival, and now it has been given the opportunity to present itself at festivals in Ottawa and Melbourne. The Ottawa Festival is one of the most appreciated events promoting world animation.

– This is the most important animation festival in the Americas, and we are the only Polish film that has qualified there this year – comments the director. The Ottawa Festival will run from September 23 to October 4, 2020, and the Melbourne International Film Festival from August 6-23, 2020. Festivals will be held online.

Film plot

Escaping despair after the loss of his loved ones, the protagonist hides in a safe land of memories, where time stands still and all his loved ones live. Over the years, the city develops in his imagination. One day, heroes and idols from childhood known from literature and cartoons, who are eternally young in the minds of subsequent generations, arrive uninvited. When the protagonist discovers that everyone has grown old and that eternal youth does not exist, he decides to return to real life.

The producers of the film are Agnieszka Ścibior (Bombonierka) and Ewa Puszczyńska (Extreme Emotions). The co-producers are: National Film Archive – Audiovisual Institute, Adam Mickiewicz Institute, EC1, Letko, Nolabel, Di Factory, Gigant Films.