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Film about Poland's communist past wins top prize at festival

02.10.2023 23:30
A documentary about life in communist-era Poland has been named the best production at a film festival that celebrates the country’s struggle for freedom in the 20th century.
More than 250 documentaries and feature films from various countries were screened during this years Defiant, Unvanquished, Enduring Film Festival, which celebrates Polands postwar anti-communist resistance heroes and its struggle for freedom from 1939 to 1989.
More than 250 documentaries and feature films from various countries were screened during this year's "Defiant, Unvanquished, Enduring” Film Festival, which celebrates Poland’s postwar anti-communist resistance heroes and its struggle for freedom from 1939 to 1989.Photo: PAP/Andrzej Jackowski

The documentary, entitled Stanisław Helski. Dlategowon the “Golden Resistor” award of the 15th “Defiant, Unvanquished, Enduring” Film Festival, which closed in the northern city of Gdynia at the weekend.

The production, directed by Michał Torz, tells the story of a man who was brought to financial ruin by communist repression and who in 1994 attacked Poland's former communist leader and martial law architect, Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski, at a book launch event in the southwest of the countrypublic broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency reported.

Meanwhile, The Last Execution, a German spy drama directed by Franziska Stünkel, was announced the best international feature film, and a Belarusian-Ukrainian production entitled Motherland was named as the winner in the international documentary category.

More than 250 documentaries and feature films from various countries were screened during this year's festival, which celebrates Poland’s postwar anti-communist resistance heroes and its struggle for freedom from 1939 to 1989.

The annual event also includes exhibitions, panel discussions, book launches and meetings with eyewitnesses of historical events, Polish state news agency PAP reported.

Polish Radio was a media partner of the festival.

(gs)

Source: IAR, PAP, TVP