Wilderness in the Bieszczady mountains, with the nearest shop eight kilometers away. These are the conditions in which Zbyszek who burns charcoal decided to live. He treats hard work as a kind of atonement for his past deeds. Three tar makers who worked with him, including his son, are already dead. The man sees a link between their deaths and his deeds. His next companion is black Gustaw whose dream is to study medicine. Will he turn out to be the title fourth man?
An analysis of the space of the Stadium of the Decade. Formerly the site of the most important sporting events and state celebrations, since 1989 it has become one of the largest markets. The director, presenting one day in the life of the Fair Europe, shows his multi-level construction and the hierarchy of sellers, often coinciding with the topographic layout of the stadium and national affiliation - mainly Polish or Vietnamese, though there are also other visitors from outside the eastern border. The film creates a mosaic of stories told by traffickers, policemen and local criminals. Their accounts show the realities of stadium life - the day of work begins at night, and besides trade, it is filled with numerous thefts, frauds and ethnic tensions. The film also uses archival material from the Documentary and Feature Film Studios, showing the life of the stadium in PRL.
The Association of Theatrical Practices Gardzienice was founded in 1976 by Wlodzimierz Staniewski in a village near Lublin, which remains the group's headquarters to this day. Staniewski had just finished a five-year period of collaboration with Jerzy Grotowski’s Teatr Laboratorium. The group does create theatrical productions, but its main work is to conduct research into folk culture, as well as ethnic and anthropological studies. Members of the group take part in expeditions. There the shape of future productions is formed, productions which are evolving more and more closely towards modern mystery plays, restoring tragedy from the spirit of music. In this documentary, the process of the very particular "ethno-theatrical" expeditions that Gardzienice Centre was making in the past is portrayed. It shows the preparation, the way that the interactions with local communities happened, and how the material that was collected later informed them during the creation of performances.
A short documentary about women, cats and children and the relative importance of each to the other.
The film is set in the Bialystok region on the holy mountain of Grabarka, the areas of Siemiatycz, Milejczyc and others. The protagonist is John Trochimczyk, who driven by misfortune decides to carry the cross before the feast of the Saviour and dedicate it to Grabarka to rescue his sick wife. With a wooden cross provided, he meets along the way local people and all the time is approaching the sacred mountains of Grabarka.
The documentary presents children from the village of Paszyn, who paint on glass. The boys also became interested in carving figures in wood. They were encouraged by the local parish priest, Father Edward Nitka, to develop local, folk culture. The children talk passionately about the themes of their works.
A ballad-like story about a group of young people who settled in a village near Olsztyn a few years ago and decided to stay and work on the land. Among them are art historians, an actor, and an engineer. The film, which has no commentary, is accompanied by a song whose chorus sounds like the young protagonists' credo: "So take life into your own hands, life as it is. You won't get any more of it, you know that very well."
Documentary portrait of a mysterious man who guarded order in Lomza in the '80s. Memories of the sheriff provide an opportunity to show the grim reality of Lomza. Focused like a lens on some problems plaguing the country - alcoholism, stupefaction, the disappearance of ambition and aspiration, crime, the lack of hope for any change. All this is tried to be remedied by the almost fairy-tale character of an extreme idealist from Lomza - the title sheriff - who single-handedly undertakes the fight against all manifestations of evil, exposing himself to ridicule and even suspicion of mental illness.
Children from the Youth Culture Centre in Nowy Sącz, under the care of their instructors, prepare for a performance to dance and sing together. They belong to the regional song and dance ensemble "Sądeczoki". They try to follow the teachers' instructions as best as they can to improve their skills and refine their performance.
A portrait of the employees of the Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw. The film shows one night, during which we witness the duty of its guards, cleaners, guards, elevators. It's a pretext to listen to their stories about the Palace, its history. Everything happens while the wedding of the daughter of the Palace's guards is taking place in the background in the PKiN staff canteen.
A documentary etude presenting statements made by high school graduates in 1981 about their perception of socialism in the People's Republic of Poland. Young women and men express their dissatisfaction and fears about their own future in socialist Poland, whose fate, they claim, is subject to the vision of Moscow and party comrades at home.
In photos and films, Praga resembles a small town rather than a district of Warsaw. One may see service facilities, sometimes only signboards and few craftsmen doing jobs becoming a thing of the past. Grinders, engravers, tailors, blacksmiths, saddlers rarely meet their customers. The symbol of the passing era is a cabman portrayed against high and modern blocks of flats. In the backyards of Praga, mangles are still visible. It is a thing of women, similarly to beauty and hairdressing salons. A lighthouse keeper still lights gas lamps, but the bygone world slowly dies out.
Portrait of a family emigrating to Sweden.
A short displaying the process of manufacturing and assembling a Fiat 126P in Poland, a so-called "maluch".
A brief look into a classroom in Warsaw, featuring mentally disabled students.
An "Open letter to the directors of the Municipal Transport Company in Warsaw", an appeal for a more rational and passenger-oriented communication policy in the capital. From the film we learn that when asked about the causes of problems with Warsaw public transport, the authorities typically give the same answer: "objective difficulties" are to blame. The author of the documentary, the author of many films devoted to the faults and thoughtlessness of Warsaw officials, managed to identify 8 basic difficulties that make the use of public transport in the capital city in the early 1970s a nightmare. The degree of their "objectivity" can be decided by the viewer himself.
Abstract, geometric forms, became the basis for the most outstanding works of the avant-garde sculptor Katarzyna Kobro. With her 'Spatial Compositions', she created her own artistic language, with which she aroused a lot of criticism, which was based on the traditional assumption that a sculpture should be a compact, modelled mass. However, the task of "Composition" was to shape forms that were to come into being. Kobro, however, still wanted to change the space surrounding people with her own art.
Techniques for rapid drying and harvesting of grasses using various machines.
A special episode of the Chronicle commemorating the death of Bolesław Bierut. He died in Moscow, March 13, 1956. The President of Poland, the President of the Council of Ministers of the Polish People's Republic, the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Polish United Workers' Party, was a guest of the earth-shattering 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, at which Khrushchev delivered a secret speech on the crimes of Stalinism. Obviously, the film does not mention that because in our country Bierut's death began the thaw period. An honor guard was set next to the coffin in Moscow. The funeral was attended by PUWP delegates, marshals of the USSR, family and workers. The last journey led through Moscow to the airport, where the Bulgarian Prime Minister gave his farewell speech. The funeral march created by Fryderyk Chopin accompanies the images in the production.
In the years 1955-59, the repatriation of the Polish population from the USSR continued. The camera accompanies the repatriates from the border crossing in Terespol, through repatriation points, to their destination cities in the Recovered Territories. The days are full of hope and the nights are anxious.
