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25-11-2010

A Full Slate of Films for Apple Film

By FNE Staff

    Coproductions are a staple of Apple Film's current slate of films. Apple Film capped off a busy 2009-2010 with the premiere of its latest film, a Swedish/Polish coproduction Between Two Fires directed by Agnieszka Lukasiak, at the Warsaw, Pusan, and Nordic Days film festivals. It followed the Visegrad/UK coproduction of Janosik. A True Story directed by Agnieszka Holland and Kasia Adamik; and a personal success for Apple Film founder Dariusz Jablonski, as writer/director of the documentary War Games and the Man Who Stopped Them which premiered as the opening film of IDFA before going on to festival successes worldwide. Following is an overview of Apple Film's most recent films, films in production, and projects in development.

    PROJECTS IN DEVELOPMENT

    IMMIGRANTS

    Director: Dariusz Jabłoński

    Writers: Dariusz Jabłoński, Krzysztof Łukaszewicz

    Genre: Drama

    Based on a tragic event which took place at a Canadian airport in October 2007 when a Polish immigrant was killed by security guard with a taser gun. An amateur video footage, shot by accidental witness and showing this tragedy, was watched on You Tube by millions of people all over the world.

    IMMIGRANTS will be almost a real events' reconstruction with some fiction elements, stylistically close to „Short Film about Killing" by Krzysztof Kieslowski, a classic morality based on the reality of our times after September 11.

    35 mm, color, 100`

    Polish/Canadian co-production

    THE AFTERMATH

    Director: Władysław Pasikowski

    Writer: Władysław Pasikowski

    Genre: Drama

    A peaceful village embodying the idyllic beauty of the Polish countryside harbours a dark secret: the collective murder by the inhabitants of their Jewish neighbours during World War II.

    Two estranged brothers: one „good," the other „bad" according to their father, discover the secret and are faced with the need to revise their perception of their father, and consequently their family, neighbors, country, and national history.

    This is a film about making such judgments, told through the stories of ordinary people who have nothing to do with politics, through their fundamental decency and right­eousness, their baseness and their lies.

    35mm, color, 110'

    Release planned for: 2012

    FATHER

    Director: Artur Urbański

    Writer: Artur Urbański

    Genre: Drama

    It is a film about the fraught relationship between an aging man and his grown-up son, who has just become a father himself. It's an uncompromising tale about dealing with the passage of time, growing up, family responsibilities, aging and, finally, letting go of life.

    „With this film I would like to tell the story of a father-son relationship, explore the com­plexities and consequences it involves, and show how difficult, if not impossible, it is for a son to give up the role model his father had been. I believe this relationship is seminal in defining the way we interact with the world at large."

    Artur Urbanski's feature debut „Bellissima", has been shown at IFF Toronto („Discoveries" section) and awarded, among others, at Venice International TV Festival and Polish Film Festival.

    35 mm, color, 110`

    THE WHITE CIRCUS

    Directors: Chris Lavis, Maciek Szczerbowski

    Writers: Chris Lavis, Maciek Szczerbowski

    Genre: Fantastical epic

    The White Circus is the last dream of the twen­tieth century; a fable of war, youth, love and heroism.

    A naive and foolishly romantic Canadian Pilot crashes his plane after being shot down on his first mission. Scared and alone, he is swept up into a thrilling and terrible adventure. Before the night is over he will fall in love with a beautiful cabaret singer, find a companion and romantic rival in a talking circus Bear, and be the catalyst for the town`s revolu­tion and liberation from a maniacal despot.

    At the film`s end, he emerges from his ordeal - perhaps not wise, but far less of a fool.

    35 mm, color, 110`

    Produced by Silo Corporation in co-production with Foundation Features, National Film Board in Canada, Apple Film Production, Lago Film GmbH

    ENCHANTRESS OF NUMBERS

    Director: Bruce Beresford

    Writer: Shanee Edwards

    Genre: Drama

    The middle of 19th century. Beautiful, extreme­ly talented young woman is accused by British Academy of „teaching a machine how to think". She was called Ada Byron King and she is now widely recognized and esteemed by compu­ter users. Her contribution to development of computer programming was so significant, that in 1980 US Defense Department called the first computer language „ADA" and Microsoft used her image on its holograms.

    Based on a true story, funny and melodrama-tic at the same time, tale of Ada Byron King, Countess Lovelace, the daughter of famous Lord Byron.

    35 mm, color, 110`

    UK/Polish co-production

    Produced by Enchantress Production LLC in co-production with Apple Film Production, Alwernia Studios

    THE JOURNEY TO ZAMOŚĆ

    Writer: Hadar Galron

    Genre: Drama

    Legend has it that when God gave out wis­dom, he missed one Jewish village in Poland -Chelm. But who needs wisdom in a world where logic no longer exists?

    When Chelm's only clock stops, on September first 1939 - Mendle the time-keeper is chosen to travel to the nearby city of Zamość, check the time on their famous clock tower, come back and set Chelm's clock anew!

    News of Mendles' journey brings a handful of colorful characters, each with his or her own dream, to join the rickety wagon to Zamość.

    But the merry group soon discovers that outside their village the world is at war. They move us from laughter to tears with their naïveté and helplessness, each dangerous encounter further convincing them that the world has gone crazy and the only sane place is back home...

    Little do they know that ‘home' no longer exists.

    A fantasy journey combining live action with 3d (CGI) elements.

    35mm, color, 90`

    Israeli/Polish co-production

    Produced by Eden Productions in co-production with Apple Film Production

    LULLABY TO MY FATHER

    Director: Amos Gitai

    Writer: Amos Gitai

    Genre: Documentary

    French/Suisse/Polish co-production

    CONFIDENT

    Director: Juraj Nvota

    Writer: Ľubomír Slivka

    Genre: Drama

    Slovakian/Polish/Czech co-production

    BEUYS

    Director: Lech Majewski

    Writer: Dagmar Gabler

    Genre: Drama

    Polish/German co-production

    PROJECT IN PRODUCTION

    LAND OF OBLIVION

    Director: Michale Boganim

    Writer: Michale Boganim

    Cast: Olga Kurylenko, Andrzej Chyra

    Genre: Drama

    Year 1986. Prypec, a town just next to Cherno­byl, few days before the catastrophe. Wedding of Peter and Anna is suddenly inter­rupted by the fire of the nuclear power station. Being a fireman Peter is called on to put out the fire. Young bride stays at the wedding with guests waiting for her brand new husband.

    It's the first fiction feature about the biggest nuclear catastrophe in the modern world directed by young French director Michale Boganim, whose films were shown at the biggest film festivals in the world: Cannes, Venice, Berlin and Karlovy Vary.

    35mm, color, 110`

    French/Polish/German co-production

    Release planned for: 2011

    Produced by Les Films du Poisson in co-production with Arte, Nikovantastic Films, Apple Film Produc­tion supported by Eurimages, Cinecinéma, Foundation GAN, the CNC, Polish Film Institute

    PROJECT IN POST-PRODUCTION

    MY AUSTRALIA

    Director: Ami Drozd

    Writer: Ami Drozd

    Cast: Jakub Wroblewski, Lukasz Sikora, Aleksandra Poplawska, Avraham Horovitz, Lillian Roth, Shmuel Edelman, Yuli Ildis

    Genre: Drama

    City of Lodz in Poland, after the Second World War. Two brothers, Tadek and Andrzej, grow up without father, and their mother, so busy at work, do not notice when boys join a rowdy and anti-Semitic organization. Only, when during a fight one of the boys gets hurt, she realizes what is going on. Then she decides to leave Poland together with her family and go to...Australia. At the end of the trip it comes out that the goal was not to reach Australia but Israel. Boys become conscious of their and their family roots. The film is a full of emotions but also humorous tentative of self statement, and in case of both kids as well as based on social stereotypes brings humoris­tic and brutal situations.

    Produced by Transfax Film Production, Apple Film Production supported by Polish Film Institute, The Cinema Project a joint project of The Rabinovich Foundation for the Arts & the Recanati Foundation

    35 mm, color, Dolby SR, 90`

    Israeli/Polish co-production

    Release planned for: 2011

    PROJECTS COMPLETED

    WAR GAMES AND THE MAN WHO STOPPED THEM

    Director: Dariusz Jabłoński

    Writer: Dariusz Jabłoński

    Genre: Documentary

    It is a story about a man whom historians con­sider as the most important spy of the cold war era. The main character of Dariusz Jabloński's documentary is Ryszard Kukliński, a colonel in headquarters of the Polish Army in the ‘70s. Between 1972 and 1981 he handed over to the West over 40 thousand pages of the top secret Warsaw Pact documents. Some people claim that if it wasn't for those documents, maybe all Europe would be licking their wounds after the worldwide nuclear cataclysm. Americans see him as a hero, Russians - as a traitor, Poles are divided. Kukliński considered himself as an ordinary soldier, who - whatever he was do­ing, was doing it for his country.

    Production Apple Film Production in co-production with Telewizja Polska S.A., ARTE, Trigon Production co-financing Polish Film Institute, Ministry of Culture of Slovak Republic with the support of Media Programme Of European Union

    35 mm, color, Dolby Digital, 113`

    Polish/German/French/Slovak co-production

    Released: 2009, Poland

    World sales: First Hand Films

    Festivals:

    IDFA 2009, Amsterdam, opening film, official selection

    Hot Docs 2010, Toronto, World Showcase programme

    Doc.Fest 2010, Munich, official selection

    Montreal International Film Festival 2010, official selection

    Bergen International Film Festival 2010, documentary section

    RIDM. Montreal International Documentary Festival 2010

    JANOSIK. THE TRUE STORY

    Directors: Agnieszka Holland, Kasia Adamik

    Writer: Eva Borušovičova

    Cast: Václav Jiráček, Michał Żebrowski, Ivan Martinka, Sarah Zoe Canner

    Genre: Drama

    Young Janosik, burnt out by war experiences and disappointed in love, joins team of brigands. Soon he becomes the troop's leader and is recog­nized as a brave but honorable commander, as he never kills anyone he robs. Alongside the fame he also starts enjoying popularity among wom­en. But Janosik's success raises jealousy in one of the troop's member, greedy and brutal Huncaga.

    The story of Janosik, a legendary „Central European Robin Hood", based on a real XVIII century documents and on a romantic legend.

    Apple Film Production in co-production with In Film, Telewizja Polska S.A. - Film Agency, Charlie's, Eurofilm Studio, HBO Central Europe supported by Polish Film Institute, Ministry of Culture Slovak Republic

    35 mm cinemascope, color, Dolby Digital, 140`

    Polish/Czech/Slovak/Hungarian co-production

    Released: 2009

    World sales: Shoreline Entertainment

    Festivals:

    Czech Finale Plzen Festival

    nominated for Polish Film Awards Eagles in the categories: Best Sound and Best Costumes nominated for Slovakian Film Award Sun in The Net in three categories: Best Costumes, Best Set Design and Best Make-up

    BETWEEN TWO FIRES

    Director: Agnieszka Lukasiak

    Writer: Agnieszka Lukasiak

    Cast: Magdalena Popławska, Kamila Nowysz, Simon Kassianides, Leila Haji, Fredrik Ohlsson

    Genre: Drama

    Young woman and her daughter escape from child trafficking in Belarus and ends up in refugee camp in North Sweden.

    Fighting for survival, she becomes an easy prey to strange world surrounding her. Soon she will face extreme choices that will turn her life into a nightmare.

    Produced by Hob AB in co-production with Apple Film Production, Filmpool Nord AB, Republiken AB, Sonet Film AB supported by The Swedish Film Institute, The Polish Film Institute, The MEDIA Programme of the European Community

    35 mm, color, Dolby Digital, 130`

    Swedish/Polish co-production

    Festivals:

    Warsaw International Film Festival 2010, official selection, 1-2 Competition

    Pusan International Film Festival, official selection

    52. Nordic Film Days Luebeck - Church Film Prize