In March, the festival world starts coming out of its winter slumber. After two months with relatively few screenings of Polish short films, the festival season is now slowly kicking into high gear. This month, Polish short films will be featured at, among others, South/Southwest, Mecal Pro, and the Tampere festival.

March screenings begin on the first day of the month, which marks the beginning of the Russian KinoDUEL International Film Festival – with Karina Węgiełek's “Red” in its competitive section. Immediately after, it's time for one of the major short film festivals in Finland – the Tampere Film Festival. Its program includes five Polish shorts: Anna Morawiec's "Fading Snow", which is in competition, “Leather” by Karolina Borgiasz as well as three films by Tomek Popakul: “Ziegenort”, “Black”, and “Acid Rain”. In the first week of March, the film "You Haven't Seen What I've Seen" by Ewa Lang, which was included in the Through Women's Eyes International Film Festival in the United States, can also count on prizes.

The Polish film industry will also mark its presence during the Tricky Women/Tricky Realities Animation Festival in Austria, whose competitive section features three productions – with another four in non-competitive segments. Daria Kopiec's “Your Own Bullshit”, Julia Orlik's “I'm Here”, and Anastazja Naumenko's “We Hope You Won't Need To Come Back” all have a shot at winning. The remaining titles include: “We Have One Heart” by Katarzyna Warzecha, “Portrait of a Woman” by Natalia Durszewicz, and one of the most acclaimed Polish animated films of recent years: “Pussy” by Renata Gąsiorowska and “III” by Marta Pajek.

One major international festival whose viewers will get the opportunity to watch Polish short films is the US-based South/Southwest. Its competitive section is going to feature two animated films from our country: Daria Kopiec's “Your Own Bullshit” and Yelyzaveta Pysmak's “My Fat Arse and I”. The Prague Short Film Festival is being held at the same time. Tomek Popakul's “Acid Rain” will have a chance to add yet another award to its already impressive portfolio. Another award might also go to Tomek Ducki's “Plantarium”, which was invited to the competition of the Friss Hús Budapest International Short Film Festival in Hungary.

Another event with a strong Polish representation is Barcelona's Mecal Pro – a festival dedicated to short films and animations. As many as five titles are included in its program, including two in competitive sections. “I'm Here” by Julia Orlik and “My Fat Arse and I” by Yelyzaveta Pysmak have a chance at wining awards, while “Such a Beautiful Town” by Marta Koch, “Dog Days” by Zuzanna Grajcewicz and Weronika Szyma's "Lushfulness" will be screened in non-competitive sections. Two more films have also been included in the program of the Ukrainian Docudays UA International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival: Katarzyna Warzecha's “We Have One Heart” and Julia Orlik's “I'm Here”.

The Kaboom Animation Festival in the Netherlands is shaping up to be the festival with the largest number of Polish short films, since as many as six have been invited to its competition. The jury will evaluate: “The Land of Whim” by Betina Bożek, Natalia Spychała's "Marbles", “We Have One Heart” by Katarzyna Warzecha, “I'm Here” by Julia Orlik, “Plantarium” by Tomek Ducki, and “My Fat Arse and I” by Yelyzaveta Pysmak. Also in the Netherlands, just a few days earlier, the competitive segment of Cinedans FEST is going to feature Marta Szymańska's “Tango of Longing”.

MARCH 2021