POLISH SHORT FILMS AT INTERNATIONAL FESTIVALS IN APRIL

In April, Polish short films will be screened at several dozen festivals around the world – from Korea to the United States. A Polish cinema review at the Short Film Biennale in Vicenza is shaping up to be the largest event with viewers having the chance to see nine films from Poland.

Screenings of Polish short films in April will begin in France, with the European Film Festival of Lille, which includes two productions in its competition segment: “Marcel” by Marcin Mikulski and “Tunnel” by Julia Benedyktowicz. Immediately after, two festivals in the United States are slated to begin – the GLAS Animation Festival with Julia Orlik's “I'm Here” and the Aspen ShortFest, where Katarzyna Warzecha's “We Have One Heart” will be screened. The Spanish Mieres Film Festival – moved from last year – will also be held in the first week of April, where the audience will get the chance to see Łukasz Ostalski's “The Mother”.

The second week of April will see the International Grenzland-Filmtage Selb in Germany, whose competition segment includes “Restart” by Julian Tałandziewicz. At the same time, a whole slew of festivals featuring Polish short films will be taking place in the United States. It is going to be opened by the Seattle International Film Festival and the San Francisco International Film Festival with both presenting Katarzyna Warzecha's “We Have One Heart” to its audiences. The Arizona International Film Festival will begin immediately afterwards, with Red” by Karina Węgiełek and Ondine” by Tomasz Śliwiński having a serious shot at winning awards.

One of the major festivals for Polish shorts in April will be Go Short in the Netherlands. Four Polish productions have found its way into its program. Julia Orlik's “I'm Here”, Yelyzaveta Pysmak's “My Fat Arse and I” and Tomek Popakul's “The Moon” have all been accepted for its competitive segments, while Katarzyna Warzecha's “We Have One Heart” will be screened out of competition. Warzecha's film also has qualified for the Movies that Matter Festival. “Home in a Shell” by Renata Gąsiorowska made it into the New Point of View - European Online Competition, while Antonio Galdamez's "Noamia" has a chance to win awards at the Martovski Festival in Serbia.

At the Go East festival in Germany, Nawojka Wierzbowska's “Bad Night Story” has been included in the competition, and Yelyzaveta Pysmak's “My Fat Arse and I” will be shown outside the competitive segment. Also in the third week of April, two more festivals will take place in the United States with Polish productions presented on their screens. “Portrait of Suzanne” by Izabela Plucińska has entered the competition at the Atlanta Film Festival, while Antonio Galdamez's “Noamia” is going to compete for awards at the OUTShine Film Festival in Miami. Two titles will also be shown at festivals in East Asia: Julia Orlik's “I'm Here” has qualified for Korea's Busan International Short Film Festival, while –after a year's delay – Karina Węgiełek's “Red” will be screened at the Women Make Waves Int'l Film Festival in Taiwan.

The largest representation of Polish short films in April will be featured at the Short Film Biennale in Vicenza. The Italian festival is going to hold a review of Polish cinema, with its program including “The Vibrant Village” by Weronika Jurkiewicz, “Story” by Jola Bańkowska, “Settling The Score” by Zuzanna Grajcewicz, “Volte” by Monika Kotecka and Karolina Poryzała, “Time To Go” by Grzegorz Mołda, “Oh, God!” by Betina Bożek, “Pussy” by Renata Gąsiorowska, “Bad Night Story” by Nawojka Wierzbowska, and “In A Lion” by Karol Lindholm. Milena Dutkowska's "The Hero" will have its world premiere at the Moscow Film Festival, one of the most important film-focused events.