"THE MAGIC MOUNTAIN" WINS ANIMAFEST

Czarodziejska góra (The Magic Mountain), an international co-production directed by Anca Damian and co-financed by the Polish Film Institute, received the Grand Prix at the Animafest festival in Croatia.

Czarodziejska góra (The Magic Mountain) wins Grand Prix

Czarodziejska góra (The Magic Mountain) received the Grand Prix for best feature-length animated film at the Animafest festival in Zagreb. In the jury statement, jury members Justine Bannister, Marcy Page and Boško Picula noted that the award for Czarodziejska góra (The Magic Mountain) is a form of recognition for animated documentary films. Special mention went to Anomalisa, a film by Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson.

Czarodziejska góra (The Magic Mountain)

Czarodziejska góra (The Magic Mountain) is a Polish-French-Romanian animated documentary portrait of Adam Jacek Winkler. He was a true individualist who believed that his guileless personality was not unlike that of Koziołek Matołek from the classic children’s book. With his firm belief in the anti-communist resistance movement, Winkler emigrated from Poland in 1965. He settled in Paris and became an active fighter against communism. Upon learning of the Soviet invasion in Afghanistan, he joined the Afghan forces and fought under Ahmad Shah Massoud.

A co-production supported by the Polish Film Institute

The film was produced by Aparte Films, co-produced by Filmograf, SMF Arizona Productions, the Krakow Festival Office, and the Krakow Film Commission, and co-financed by the Polish Film Institute, Telewizja Polska, KFF, CNC France, CNC Romania, and HBO Romania.

World premiere in Karlovy Vary and film awards

Anca Damian’s latest film had its world premiere at the 50th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and receive Special Mention of the Main Competition Jury. The film went on to screen at multiple film festivals and win awards at various events, including the Ottawa International Animated Film Festival, the 58th DOK Leipzig festival, the 35th Amiens Film Festival, and the 35th Istanbul International Film Festival.

Further details about the festival are available at: www.animafest.hr/en.

Magda Wylężałek

Translated by Karolina Kołtun