The 20th Millennium Docs Against Gravity was officially launched at the Polin Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw on Thursday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
The opening gala featured a screening of Jakub Piątek’s documentary Pianoforte, described by the organisers as “a gripping story about a group of young contestants in the International Chopin Piano Competition.”
This year’s edition of MDAG, which is Poland’s biggest film festival, runs between May 12 and May 21 in cinemas across eight Polish cities (Warsaw, Wrocław, Gdynia, Poznań, Katowice, Łódź, Bydgoszcz and Lublin) and from May 23 to June 4 online at mdag.pl, the PAP news agency reported.
The festival’s motto is Do Not Be Indifferent, the maxim formulated by Polish Auschwitz survivor Marian Turski, officials said.
Twelve documentaries will vie for the Grand Prix in MDAG’s main competition, including Laura Poitras’ All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, which won last year’s Venice Film Festival, as well as Lea Glob’s Apolonia, Apolonia, Alisa Kovalenko’s Ukraine-themed We Will Not Fade Away and Jakub Piątek’s Pianoforte, the PAP news agency reported.
There are 11 entries in the race for MDAG’s Best Polish Film Award, including Piotr Pawlus and Tomasz Wolski’s In Ukraine, Agnieszka Zwiefka’s Vika! And Kuba Mikurda’s Solaris Mon Amour.
In all, the 2023 Millennium Docs Against Gravity comprises 15 competitions, as well as a host of other sections, including The Power of Sisterhood, The Power of Words and What the Doc?, according to officials.
The organisers described the 20th edition of Millennium Docs Against Gravity as “a fascinating journey not only around the world, but also through many relevant issues - from ecology, through politics, psychology, human rights, art (also avant-garde), pop culture to family relations.”
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, mdag.pl, rp.pl