{mosimage}Director Ryszard Bugajewski explores the story of General Emil Fieldorf (codename Nil), a hero during the World War II and a prominent member of the AK (the Home Army) who was sentenced to death during the repressions of the communist authorities in the 1950's. Like the broadly awarded Katyń by Andrzej Wajda, this movie shows a dramatic and sensitive episode of Polish history.
The story of General Nil is one of the heroic but forgotten episodes of Polish history, a situation that the filmmakers hope to remedy.
"I still repeat to myself, that one person can be beguiled forever, but the whole nation just for a while. It is a shame that so many generations did not experience freedom, but unfortunately Poland is a small country, which was mistreated by its allies during WWII, and today we can only face the facts. Our history is so tragic and complicated that getting to know about it becomes crucial not only for every Pole, but every European. Knowledge of the national heritage constitutes a man's worth, and my work is only filling the major gaps which were created during 60 years of communism," Bugajewski said in a statement.
{mosimage}The movie was shot in Morskie Oko, Warsaw, Sierpc, and Lodz between April 21 and May 21, 2008. Prior to principal filming, the crew filmed in the Tatra Mountains National Park (October 2007) and Sierpc ( March 2008). The film was shot in CinemaScope format allowing for screening in a 2.35:1 image.
General Nil is produced by The Documentary and Feature Films Studio (WFDiF,www.wfdif.com.pl) in co-production with Fundacja Filmowa Armii Krajowej (The Home Army Film Foundation), Monolith Films (www.monolith.pl) and Telekomunikacja Polska (TP Group, www.tp.pl) . The movie's total budget is 4.5 million PLN ( €1 million) with 2.6 million PLN from the Polish Film Institute (www.pisf.pl) for production and development. The title's Polish distributor is Monolith Films.
The movie premiered in Poland on April 17, 2009, in the National Theater in Warsaw under the official patronage of the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
{mosimage}"The movie was seen by over 259,000 viewers to date, not counting the several festival and retrospective screenings," Ryszard Pawlicki from Monolith Films told FNE. "The interest in this title is still very strong, so we are re-distributing the film. We are focused especially on the schools and the young audience, as this movie can be a very valuable addition to their education,." he added.
Credits:
Director - Ryszard Bugajski
Scriptwriter - Ryszard Bugajski, Krzysztof Łukaszewicz
Cinematographer - Piotr Śliskowski
Music - Shane Harvey
Production manager - Tadeusz Drewno
Producer - Włodzimierz Niderhaus
Co-producer - Tadeusz Filipkowski, Anna Jakubowska i Mariusz Łukomski
Production Company - The Documentary and Feature Films Studio
Co-production - Fundacja Filmowa Armii Krajowej, Monolith Films, Telekomunikacja Polska
Co-financing - Polish Film Institute,Warsaw Municipal Government Office, Polish Ministry of National Defence
Distribution - Monolith Films
{mosimage}Cast:
Olgierd Łukaszewicz
Alicja Jachiewicz
Anna Cieślak
Magdalena Emilianowicz
Zbigniew Stryj
Maciej Radel
and others
Production contact:
The Documentary and Feature Films Studio (WFDiF)
ul. Chełmska 21, 00-724 Warszawa
tel.: 22 841 26 83, 22 841 12 11
fax: 22 841 58 91
email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
