“60 YEARS OF POLISH ANIMATION”

An homage and promotion of the best animated films made in Poland during the last 60 years

Meetings with the Creators – workshops

The Studio Miniatur Filmowych started the project with screenings and workshops in Zwierzyniec from the 8^th till the 16^th of August 2008.  The movie screenings, meetings and workshops took place in the halls of the Zwierzyniecki Ośrodek Kultury (Zwierzyniec Center of Culture) and at the „Dzięcioł” cinema.  Children aged 4-14 took part in the workshops (the youngest participant was actually 8 months old, he was there with his mother and older brother who was also taking part in the activities). 35 people in all participated in the workshops. Nearly 100 children were present at the movie screenings. During the workshop the children had the chance to make their own animated film (with the help of workshop coordinators) entitled “Gypsy Ambience” which became an instant hit at the Letnia Akademia Filmowa (Summer Film Academy) movie screenings in Zwierzyniec.

 

 

The next place where we took up this undertakingt was Podgorki in the Koszalin area. The activities and film screenings were organized with the help of Stowarzyszenia Rozwoju SOS (Association of Development SOS) and the town Podgorki “Together into the Future”. The workshops took place from the 17^th to the 25^th of August in the Ośrodek Szkolno-Wychowawczym (Educative School Center) in Podgorki. The participants of the workshop were children from the neighboring towns as well as the disabled and handicapped foster children of the Educative School Center.  

Koszalin – Screening of films and workshops from the 10^th till the 14th of August in the Koszalin Public Library. Children and youth from Koszalin as well as disabled children from all over Poland took part in the film screenings as part of the European Integration You and I Film Festival. At the screenings films for both children and adults were shown. At the workshops different animation techniques were shown as well as a film directed by Wieslaw Zieba. The need for such gatherings and workshops is highlighted by the fact that organizations such as the Państwowy Fundusz Rehabilitacji Osób Niepełnosprawnych (State Fund for Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons) showed interest in the application of animation and animated movies into the therapy and rehabilitation of disabled people.

Tarnow and Sanok are two cities which welcomed the project after Ostrow Mazowiecki and Zakopane pulled out of the planned meetings and screenings that were to take place. The workshops took place in the Tarnow Center of Culture and the screenings at the “Marzenie” Cinema. The cartoon animation was done by the children who participated in the meeting, they worked on the composting and took part in the various stages of editing. After the screening of the movie „Kogucik Tarnus” (Rooster Tarnus) which received a standing ovation and was attended to by 200 the project moved onto the next stop Sanok. The children were able to come to the workshops thanks to a special school bus. On the very first day the children were able to watch their own film, which kept them motivated. 

Meetings in Western Ukraine: Lviv - Sambir – Turka 30.09 – 5.10. 2008

 

Shows and workshops were held in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Studio Minatur Filmowych and the 60 years of Polish Animation. The events were held in Lviv and in cities near the Polish border. Polish minorities reside in these cities.

 

30^th of September 2008 Lviv – Cinema “Lew” a showing of twelve SMF movies was held. All the films represent the last 50 years of the Studios works. Around 25 people were present at the showing, all students of the Lviv University of Technology, which has the only animation studio in the City.

 

The meeting began with the Studio Directing Managers speech which was followed by a short history of the Studio and an animation show using the Flash MX program.

After the show there was a discussion

 

2^nd of October 2008 Sambir – The Cinema of the Center of Culture. A presentation of children’s animated movies, around 200 children form Sambir and neighboring cities participated.

 

 

 

Before the show, the Managing Director of the studio spoke about the about the use of computers in animation, which preceded a workshop where computers and traditional celluloid animation was shown.

Afterwards a contest was held on the history of animated films, the prize was an original celluloid from a film.

The children and teachers showed great interest in the events. Individual meeting where later held as well as gatherings with the teachers and local town government.

 

4^th of October 2008 Turka – “Ukraina” Cinema around 120 children form the Turka elementary school were present as well as the teachers and representatives of the roman catholic parish. The schedule was similar to the one in Sambir.

The above mentioned events were the first of their kind. Not only was it the first time Polish animation was shown on the terrains of Western Ukraine but, in the case of Sambir and Turka it was the first time modern Polish art was shown.

That’s why the main aim of these meetings was showing Polish animation as an important part of Polish modern culture and a universal form of communication for children.  

The project accomplished much, i.e. many movies were made during these workshops as well as many new contacts were made, but above all we hope that many new and interesting things were learnt by the people who took part and through this children now know a lot more about animated films.

The next stop was Wejherowo where the project could spread knowledge about animation from the 5^th to the 11th of October. Just after seeing a few drawings which were the designs for the project we were able to tell that this group of children was very talented. These children which on an every day basis are loud and hard to talk to now showed a great interest in their work and respect for others. The collaboration on a animated movie requires motivation and skills needed to work in groups. All of the teachers of the children who participated in the workshops were in awe at how the children’s approach had changed after the workshops. The participants and coordinators had a hard time saying goodbye to each other but promised to meet up next year.

Afterward the project went to Podlasie to the city of Bialowieza. Most of the children who participated in these workshops were children from orphanages. At the beginning of the of the workshops the children were very closed and introverted, but with time they became more self confident. The children became absorbed with the set and made a film about the Bialowieza Forest. At the screening of their movie, they could not believe that what was shown on the cinema screen was their own work. During the seven days of the workshops (2^nd-21^st of November 2008) a sense of pride and self worth became a part of these children and they now have confidence in what they do and above all in themselves. The desire to help these children was so strong that to this day one of the workshop coordinators keeps in touch with the orphanage.

From the regions of the Bialowieza Forset the project moved to Ostroleka. From the 17^th to the 21^st of November 2008 in the Ostroleka Center of Culture the incredible movie entitled “Magical Christmas” was created by the participants of the workshop. The movie was also screened at the Muranow Cinema in Warsaw. An incredible ambiance was created whilst working thanks to the talent of the children and workshop coordinators. The participants used two animation techniques: cartoon animation and spatial animation. The children were also involved in the postproduction i.e. the editing, the scoring and composting of the film. Furthermore many computer processing talents were discovered. The premier itself was spectacular: TV crews were present, the seats were sold out (150 people were present as well as the children). Each child received a diploma of completion, a DVD of their film and a souvenir hand-painted celluloid. This was truly their day.

The last stop where the project took place was in Lublin. The workshops lasted for seven days from the 1^st to the 12^th of December 2008. The children worked on their own projects all related to the theme of New Years eve. With great enthusiasm they created their own characters and wrote their own stories. Their hard work was rewarded by Santa Clause himself who brought them sweet gifts. The result of their hard work was the film entitled “A New Years Bang” which was shown at the DKF.

Eugeniusz Gordziejuk