POLISH ANIMATED FILMS AWARDED IN ZAGREB

Impossible Figures and Other Stories I by Marta Pajek and Love in Times of Coal-Based Economy by Tomasz Siwiński both received special mentions at Animafest Zagreb.

The World Festival of Animated Film – Animafest Zagreb was first held in 1972. It's the second oldest film festival, after Annecy, entirely dedicated to animation and one of the world's most important festivals on this subject.

Love in Times of Coal-Based Economy received a special mention for the best film made in minority co-production with Croatia. Tomasz Siwiński's film begins with a prehistoric fish taking its first step on dry land. Tyrannosaurs cuddle are awaiting death following a meteorite impact. The year is 1963 and it's the winter of the century in Poland, with chimneys happily spitting out black smoke. Here we meet a young coal loader who loves a beautiful crane operator to bits. The fire of love won't let him freeze when he struggles with piercing frost and, pushed by desire, wades through snowdrifts. Our heroes, still completely unaware of global warming and excessive carbon dioxide emissions, will play their roles in a human comedy of love and death. The film was produced by Letko and Adriatic Animation.

In turn, the international jury recognised Impossible Figures and Other Stories I by awarding it a special mention. Marta Pajek's awarded film is set in a world right after a big bang. Only a few seniors are left alive in a deserted city. The protagonist, an old woman, walks the streets of the empty city with difficulty. She is surrounded by facades of empty houses with geometrically divided planes, monuments that reminiscent of past victories that are now completely meaningless and dead mannequins in store windows. The memories of those who will never come back to the city come back in short flashes. The first part of Marta Pajek's triptych is a post-apocalyptic vision of the world in which man and his existence mean no more than a fraction of a second. Marta Pajek's triptych is based on the concept of impossible figures. The film was produced by Animoon and the National Film Board of Canada.

A list of all the winners can be found here.