From among 200 entries, we chose 34 pictures. These include feature films, documentaries, animations and experimental forms.

This year’s jury consists of URSZULA ANTONIAK (director, screenwriter, author of “Code Blue”, a drama presented in Cannes, and “Nothing Personal” awarded in Locrano), PIOTR DOMALEWSKI (director, screenwriter, author of “Silent Night”, winner of a Grand Prix Golden Lion in Gdynia and an Eagle – Polish Film Award), GABRIELA MUSKAŁA (film and theatre actress, playwright, screenwriter; “Fugue” by Agnieszka Smoczyńska with Gabriela Muskała’s script and her in the lead was presented this year in Cannes).

First place – PLN 5000; 2nd place – PLN 3000; 3rd place – PLN 2000. The official co-sponsor of the awards in the International Short Films Competition is Mercedes-Benz.

Here is the full list of the films qualified to the International Short Films Competition at the 12th Two Riversides Film and Art Festival:

1. 7 Planets, dir. Milda Baginskaite, United Kingdom
2. Are You Volleyball?!, dir. Mohammad Bakhshi, Iran
3. Aurora, dir. Diego Fandos, Spain
4. Błoto (Mud), dir. Alicja Błaszczyńska, Poland
5. Bogdan i Róża (Bogdan and Rose), dir. Milena Dutkowska, Poland
6. Comments, dir. Jannis Alexander Kiefer, Germany
7. Córka (Daughter), dir. Mara Tamkovich, Poland
8. Drżenia (Tremors), dir. Dawid Bodzak, Poland
9. Fanatyk (The Fanatic), dir. Michał Tylka, Poland
10. Heimat, dir. Emi Buchwald, Poland
11. Huidzeer (Skinache), dir. Jos van Meerveld, Holland
12. Inner Me, dir. Antonio Spanò, Italy
13. Kleptomami, dir. Pola Beck, Germany
14. Leksykon myśli (Lexicon of Reflexions), dir. Ula Reszczyńska, Poland
15. Le Lapin de Noël (The Christmas Rabbit), dir. Christophe Lopez-Huici, France
16. Lower Heaven, dir. Emad Aleebrahim Dehkordi, France
17. Na zdrowie! (Bless you!), dir. Paulina Ziółkowska, Poland
18. Panic Attack!, dir. Eileen O’Meara, USA
19. Peggie, dir. Rosario Capozzolo, Italy
20. Piszę do Ciebie kochanie (I’m writing to you, my love), dir. Magdalena Szymków, Poland
21. Proszę o ciszę (Their Voices), dir. Eri Mizutani, Poland
22. Queen of Oasis, dir. Lynn Baur, Germany
23. Rodzina (Family), dir. Patrycja Widłak, Poland
24. Salveger (Anniversary), dir. Angelica Germana, Bozza, Germany
25. Silvia dans les vagues (Silvia in the Waves), dir. Giovana Olmos, Canada
26. Siostry (The Sisters), dir. Michał Hytroś, Poland
27. Szczęście (Happiness), dir. Maciej Buchwald, Poland
28. Świtezianka (The Nixie), dir. Julia Bui Ngoc i Mai Bui Ngoc, Poland
29. Tamtej nocy (Off the Hook), dir. Pat Howl Kostyszyn, Poland
30. Techno, dir. Tadeusz Łysiak, Poland
31. Tsantsa, dir. Robin Lipo, Poland
32. Wakacje (It’s summer), dir. Filip Bojarski, Poland
33. Wełniaki (Woolworld), dir. Joanna Polak, Poland
34. Wiki, dir. Veronica Andersson, Poland

The “World Under a Tent” section includes award winners from Berlin, Cannes, Locarno and Sundance. It opens with the Polish premiere of “Shoplifters” (“Manbiki kazoku”), a Palme d’Or winner, by Hirokazu Koreeda, a brilliant Japanese filmmaker known for his “Like Father, Like Son”, a master of surprising, deep, funny and touching family portraits. The festival concludes with “Dogman” by Matteo Garrone, which won Marcello Fonte a Palme d’Or in the best actor category. The programme includes a special screening of “Cold War” (“Zimna wojna”) by Paweł Pawlikowski (Palme d’Or winner for directing) with the participation of filmmakers, including Joanna Kulig, whose performance delighted the critics, public, and her fellow actresses—Julianne Moore and Cate Blanchett.

From the Cannes Festival programme, we have also chosen “Three Faces” (dir. Jafar Panahi; best screenplay award in the main competition), the outstanding “Donbass” by Sergiej Loznitsa, “Sofia” (dir. Meryem Benm’Barek-Aloisi; best screenplay award winner in the Un Certain Regard category), “Arctic” starring Mads Mikkelsen (dir. Joe Penna), the incredible “Harvesters” (“Die Stroopers”, dir. Etienne Kallos, cinematography by Michał Englert), and “Burning”, based on the Haruki Murakami’s prose (dir. Lee Chang-dong). We will premiere “Image Book” (a film essay on the history of cinematography, and a Special Palme d’Or winner) and a unique document “Searching for Ingmar Bergman” directed by Margarethe von Trotta, whose films were screened two years ago at Two Riversides. During her meeting with the audience, she said she was working on a document about a master of cinematography who was uniquely skilled in studying the female psyche. This is exactly this film.

We also have films from Berlinale. The programme of Two Riversides includes the premiere of “7 Days in Entebbe” (dir. José Padilha), a great thriller based on a true story, starring Daniel Brühl as the lead actor, “U-July 22” (dir. Erik Poppe) about the tragedy on Utøya island and Anders Breivik’s terrorist attack on a youth camp, “Transit” (dir. Christian Petzold), which compares European refugees from the Nazis’ time with the fate of the victims of the current migration crisis in an interesting and ambiguous way. In the lead role, Franz Rogowski, a rising star of German cinema, who also appears in “In the Aisles” (“In den Gängen”, dir. Thomas Stuber). The titular aisles, although possibly associated with a romantic setting, are actually in the storage area in the back of a supermarket. The Two Riversides Festival will also include the premiere of a new picture by Isabel Coixet: “The Bookshop” (Goya Award winner) starring two outstanding actresses, Emily Mortimer and Patricia Clarkson, who also appeared in the last year’s “Party”. The final entry is “3 Days in Quiberon” (“3 Tage in Quiberon”, dir. Emily Atef), which paints a portrait of the beautiful and beloved Roma Schneider with passion and admiration.

Isabelle Huppert is a master of portraying characters who hide dark secrets, which is also the case in “Mrs. Hyde” (dir. Serge Bozon), a Golden Leopard winner from Locarno. Our festival in Kazimierz Dolny will see the Polish premiere of this film. Modern Italian cinematography turns back in its tone to its very best neorealist ideals. In addition to “Dogman”, the protagonist of which, Marcello, who resembles those from Vittorio De Sici’s works, believes that good deeds can change the world for the better, we will also show “Lucia’s Grace” (“Troppa Grazia”, dir. Gianni Zanasi, Directors’ Fortnight section in Cannes), “Daughter of Mine” (“Figlia Mia”) starring Alba Rohrwacher and Valeria Golino (dir. Laura Bispuri, main competition of Berlinale) as well as “Naples in Veils” (“Napoli velata”), a thriller by the award-winning director Ferzan Ozpetek.

The section “A Different Look at Hungarian Cinema” is an overview of the works by Karoly Makk, a Hungarian cinematography’s classic, and the screening of his “Another Way” (“Egymasra nezve”), starring Grażyna Szapołowska and Jadwiga Jankowska-Cieślak, who won a Palme d’Or in Cannes for this part. Both actresses will be special guests at the screening at the Festival Two Riversides. Karoly Makk will be compared with a younger generation of Hungarian artists, like Bogdan Arpad, who will come to Kazimierz Dolny with his new film “Genesis”.

This year’s programme also comprises excellent documents. Thanks to our cooperation with Against Gravity, we will show films that reflect both the advantages and problems of the contemporary world.

Grażyna Torbicka
Art Director, Two Riversides Film and Art Festival

The Film and Art Festival Two Riversides will take place on July 28th – August 5th, 2018.

Come to the Film and Art Festival Two Riversides on July 28th – August 5th, 2018.