New Film School in Gdynia

In October 2010, the first twelve students will begin studies at the Gdynia Film School. The school was established by the Pomeranian Film Foundation in Gdynia, in cooperation with the Łódź Film School. The Gdynia City Hall supported the project.

The people behind the idea for the Gdynia Film School are Leszek Kopeć, president of the Pomeranian Film Foundation (organizes the annual Polish Film Festival in Gdynia), and Jerzy Rados, organizer of the annual Pomeranian Film Workshops over the past several years.

The first department of the school will be directing and cinematography. The Gdynia Film School will at first be a 1-year professional school for high school graduates. School reps then plan to acquire permits for a bachelor degree and introduce a 3-year programme. The school’s curriculum was prepared by Robert Gliński, the dean of the Łódź Film School.

One of the ground rules of the programme is the simultaneous teaching of feature and documentary film, but also preparing students for production of two short films (one feature and one documentary). The 1-year programme will allow students to master the skills of making a short film.

Lecturers at the Gdynia Film School will include experienced filmmakers, including Milenia Fiedler (editing), Paweł Huelle (literary adaptation), Andrzej Jaroszewicz (the art of cinematography), Rafał Listopad (editing), Andrzej Titkow (documentary filmmaking), and Grzegorz Łoszewski (screenwriting).

The school office will be opened in January 2010. April will bring the call for applications. Entrance exams will take place in late June and early July. Their purpose will not be to test the skills or experience of applicants, but rather their passion and imagination.

Tuition at the Gdynia Film School will be approximately 1,800 PLN (430 euros) per semester.

Press release

Translated by Karolina Kołtun