Sections

1. Hommage à Kieślowski

The festival’s central, jubilee section presents different stages of Krzysztof Kieślowski’s career: from his student film and documentary work, through his feature-film debut, to his first international work, acclaimed at the Cannes Film Festival. At the same time, the section presents contemporary works inspired by the director’s archive and his artistic dialogue with Wim Wenders.

Films:

“Slate”, dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1976

“The Scar”, dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1976

“Postscriptum. Ruminations on My Craft”, dir. Brothers Quay, 2026

“Concert of Wishes”, dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski, Poland 1967

“The Double Life of Véronique”, dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1991

Also, other films by Kieślowski featured at this year’s festival:

“Kieślowski Meets Wenders”, dir. Natalia Koryncka-Gruz, 1994 – screening shared with the “Man on the Border” section
“The Office”, dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1966 – screening shared with the “An Office Full of Documents” section

“The Refrain”, dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1972 – screening shared with the “An Office Full of Documents” section

The section is accompanied by, among others, meetings with the crew of “The Scar”, the Quay Brothers, Jerzy Fedorowicz, Mirosław Baka and Olaf Lubaszenko. Following “The Double Life of Véronique”, there will be a conversation with Kieślowski’s friends and close collaborators. The opening will also feature a presentation of Izumi Yoshida’s animated film “The Deer”, based on an unrealised idea by Kieślowski discovered in the holdings of the Krzysztof Kieślowski Creative Archive in Sokołowsko.

 

2. Human at the Threshold

The festival’s main thematic section develops the central theme of this year’s edition. Its protagonists find themselves in situations of transition, between intimacy and isolation, life and death, certainty and ambiguity. This is cinema about moments when the existing order is no longer sufficient, while a new one has yet to take shape.

Films:

“Parallel Tales”, dir. Asghar Farhadi, 2026 – a creative reinterpretation of the screenplay for “Dekalog VI”

“Broken Voices” / “Sbormistr”, dir. Ondřej Provazník, 2025

“Wings of Desire”, dir. Wim Wenders, 1987

“Sweet Rush”, dir. Andrzej Wajda, 2009

The screenings will be accompanied by meetings with Maciej Musiał, Ondřej Provazník, Marion Döring and Krystyna Janda.

 

3. New Polish Cinema

The section presents the latest Polish films and filmmakers representing different generations and diverse artistic sensibilities. It includes both new auteur voices and an international co-production by Agnieszka Holland.

Films:

“Brother”, dir. Maciej Sobieszczański, 2025

“La Petite Mort”, dir. Martyna Byczkowska and Kaja Zalewska, 2026 – preview screening

“No Ghosts on Good Street”, dir. Emi Buchwald, 2025

“Franz”, dir. Agnieszka Holland, 2025

“Magic Hour”, dir. Marcin Borchardt, 2026

Post-screening meetings are planned with Maciej Sobieszczański and actors Filip Wiłkomirski and Tytus Szymczuk, Martyna Byczkowska and Kaja Zalewska, Emi Buchwald and screenwriter Karol Marczak, as well as Idan Weiss, who plays Franz Kafka.

 

4. An Office Full of Documents

This section has been prepared to mark the 60th anniversary of Kieślowski’s documentary debut, “The Office”. The selection allows audiences to trace how Polish documentary filmmakers from different generations have observed bureaucracy, public institutions, and people entangled in procedures, forms and official language.

Films:

“The Office”, dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1966

“The Refrain”, dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1972

“The Office”, dir. Maria Zmarz-Koczanowicz, 1986

“Film No. 1650”, dir. Marcel Łoziński, 1976

“Poste restante”, dir. Marcel Łoziński, 2006

The screening will be followed by a panel discussion with Jacek Petrycki, Maria Zmarz-Koczanowicz and Mikołaj Jazdon.

 

5. Millennium Docs Against Gravity Documentaries

This partner section presents three of the latest documentaries connected with the Millennium Docs Against Gravity programme.

Films:

“Candidates of Death”, dir. Maciej Cuske, 2025

“To Hold a Mountain”, dir. Petar Glomazić and Biljana Tutorov, 2026

“Closure”, dir. Michał Marczak, 2026

“Candidates of Death” will be followed by a meeting with Maciej Cuske and one of the film’s protagonists, Rafał Waraczewski. Following “Closure”, there will be a conversation with Michał Marczak and the film’s protagonists, Agnieszka and Daniel Dymiński.

 

6. Polish-Czech Film Dialogues:

6a. Zbyněk Brynych: Retrospective

At the heart of the Polish-Czech strand is a two-film retrospective of Zbyněk Brynych, recalling classic Czech cinema that addressed war, the Holocaust, fear and life under the pressure of an oppressive system. The screenings have a cross-border character and will be preceded by Polish-Czech introductions.

Retrospective films:

“Transport from Paradise” / “Transport z ráje”, dir. Zbyněk Brynych, 1962

“And the Fifth Rider Is Fear” / “…a pátý jezdec je Strach”, dir. Zbyněk Brynych, 1965

The first screening will be introduced by Petr Vlček, Director of the Czech Centre in Warsaw, and Diana Dąbrowska; the second by Petr Vlček.

6b. Stories About Things

“The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer”, dir. Keith Griffiths, Brothers Quay, United Kingdom 1984

“Conspirators of Pleasure”, dir. Jan Švankmajer, Czech Republic 1996

 

7. Hommage à Kondratiuk

This mini-retrospective of Andrzej Kondratiuk brings together two films made at distant points in his career. The section thus traces the director’s journey from his early cinema to his later, more personal and self-reflexive meditation on life, time and art.

Films:

“By the Great Water”, dir. Andrzej Kondratiuk, 1962

“The Spindle of Time”, dir. Andrzej Kondratiuk, 1996

The screening will be followed by a meeting with Katarzyna Figura and Ajka Tarasow.

 

8. Maria Kieślowska’s Favourite Films

This is the most personal part of the programme, offering an insight into Maria Kieślowska’s cinematic tastes. The selected title allows us to look at film history through the lens of a private relationship and personal memory.

Film:

“Life Is Beautiful”, dir. Roberto Benigni, 1997

The outdoor screening will be preceded by a film studies lecture.

 

9. Films We Would Have Shown Krzysztof Kieślowski

This section takes the form of an imagined conversation with Kieślowski through a film made after his death. The selection suggests a search for affinities between his cinema and later works exploring unfulfilled desires, intimacy, chance and emotions hidden beneath the surface of everyday life.

Film:

“In the Mood for Love”, dir. Wong Kar-wai, 2000

The screening will be preceded by a film studies lecture.

 

10. The Quay Brothers in Sokołowsko

“Street of Crocodiles”, dir. Brothers Quay, United Kingdom 1986

“Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass”, dir. Brothers Quay, Germany/Poland/United Kingdom 2024

“The Cabinet of Jan Svankmajer”, dir. Keith Griffiths, Brothers Quay, United Kingdom 1984 – screening shared with the “Polish-Czech Film Dialogues” section

“Postscriptum. Ruminations on My Craft”, dir. Brothers Quay, 2026 – screening shared with the “Hommage à Kieślowski” section