10 YEARS OF THE POLISH FILM INSTITUTE
The 10 year anniversary gala of the Polish Film Institute was held on May 11, 2015 ath Warsaw’s Grand Theatre – National Opera.
The event was attended by Poland’s First Lady Anna Komorowska, the Minister of Culture and National Heritage Małgorzata Omilanowska, and representatives of the Polish film industry, the media, and the world of politics.
The gala was hosted by Agnieszka Odorowicz, General Director of the Polish Film Institute, and by Krzysztof Materna.
Summarizing 10 Years of the Polish Film Institute
The event was organized to commemorate the first decade of the Polish Film Institute and recap the changes in Polish filmmaking that followed the introduction of the new Film Law in 2005 and the creation of the Institute itself.
Special Thanks
The ceremony was also an opportunity to express gratitude to all those who contribute to the success of Polish cinema by supporting the film industry: the sponsors, filmmakers, producers, cultural activists, distributors, individuals involved in educational programmes, in organizing film festivals, and in promoting Polish cinema abroad.
The ’10 Years of Emotions’ Milestone Awards of the Polish Film Institute
One of the key points of the ceremony was the presentation of the ’10 Years of Emotions’ Milestone Awards of the Polish Film Institute — awards for people and organizations that played a part in the creation of the Polish Film Institute and continue to contribute to its budget.
The Milestone Awards were presented to former ministers of culture Waldemar Dąbrowski, Kazimierz Michał Ujazdowski, Bogdan Zdrojewski, director Kazimierz Kutz, head of the Polish Filmmakers Association Jacek Bromski, and head of the Polish Chamber of Audiovisual Producers (KIPA) Maciej Strzembosz. The award on behalf of the head of the National Bank of Poland Marek Belka was accepted by Sławomir Cytrycki. The Milestona Awards also went to the Sejm and Senate of the Republic of Poland. These awards were accepted by deputy Sejm speaker Jerzy Wenderlich and deputy Senate speaker Jan Wyrowiński. Other recipients of the ’10 Years of Emotions’ Milestone Awards included representatives of organizations that contribute to the budget of the Polish Film Institute. These awards went to Zygmunt Solorz-Żak – founder and head of Polsat TV and Polsat Cyfrowy, Juliusz Braun – head of the board of Telewizja Polska, Wojciech Kostrzewa — head of ITI, and Julien Verley – general director of nc+. The award for Moshe Greidinger, general director of Cineworld, was accepted on his behalf by Cineworld’s director of development in Poland, Joanna Kotłowska.
Two ’10 Years of Emotions’ Milestone Awards were presented by General Director of the Polish Film Institute Agnieszka Odorowicz to Minister of Culture Małgorzata Omilanowska with the intent of presenting them in the future to worthy individuals and/or organizations.
Filmoteka Szkolna: Awards for Andrzej Wajda and Wojciech Smarzowski
The ceremony also featured the awards of Filmoteka Szkolna. These awards were presented to directors Andrzej Wajda and Wojciech Smarzowski for their films Wesele (The Wedding; 1972) based on a play by Stanisław Wyspiański and Wesele (The Wedding; 2004) respectively. The award winners were selected in a poll among Filmoteka Szkolna students for the most popular film of the programme.
The ceremony was co-hosted by the Grand Theatre – National Opera, and sponsored by Bank Zachodni WBK. Media partners: Gazeta Wyborcza and TVP Kultura.