East of the West 2001 / Daleko od okna / Poland 2000
Keep Away from the Window Jan’s once happy marriage starts to fall apart when his wife Barbara finds out that she can’t have children. This small family drama is overshadowed, however, by a catastrophe of far greater proportions – the outbreak of the Second World War. For the young couple the war is embodied primarily in the figure of the collaborator Jodla who is secretly in love with Barbara. In spite of the danger involved, Jan is planning to hide a young Jewish woman named Regina with whom he eventually becomes intimate. After Barbara learns that Regina is expecting Jan’s baby she decides to pretend that she, too, is pregnant. But noble feelings have not motivated her, rather an intense desire to be a mother. After Regina has Helusia, a little girl, Barbara completely takes charge of her. One day, desperate, Regina leaves her hiding place and disappears. Years later Helusia finds out the truth and sets out to find Regina in Germany. Which of the two mothers will she choose in the end?
104 min / Black & white, 35 mm
Director Jan Jakub Kolski
/ Screenplay Cezary Harasimowicz
/ Dir. of Photography Arkadiusz Tomiak
/ Music Michal Lorenc
/ Editor Zbigniew Kostrzemiński
/ Producer Witold Adamek
/ Production Close Up, Telewizja Polska S.A.
/ Cast Bartosz Opania, Dorota Landowska, Dominika Ostatorska, Krzysztof Pieczyński, Karolina Gruszka, Dariusz Toczek
Jan Jakub Kolski (b. 1956, Wrocław) studied to be a cameraman at the Film School in Lódź. He is known primarily as an experimenter in Polish magic realism. His films have won numerous awards at both foreign and domestic festivals. Selected filmography: The Burial of a Potato (Pogrzeb kartofla,1990, – screened at Cannes), Johnny the Aquarius (Jancio Wodnik), Miraculous Place (Cudowne miejsce, 1994), The Sabre from a Commander (Szabla od Komendanta, 1995 – Special Jury Prize, Tokyo Film Festival ‘95), The History of Cinema in Popielawy (Historia kina w Popielawach, 1998 – Main Prize, Alpe Adria festival in Trieste). In addition to directing, Kolski also writes screenplays and works as a cameraman; he is also the author of Johnny the Aquarius and Other Stories and the novel A Pellet of Bread (Kulka chleba).
First-hand brews throughout the year.
Be among the first to learn about upcoming events and other news. We only send the newsletter when we have something to say.
