On Friday, February 20, Kamila Dorbach met with students of the Lodz Film School. The discussion about the future of Polish cinema, strategic planning at the Institute, and short films which introduce viewers to the world of artistic cinema was led by our lecturer and film producer, Marcin Malatyński, head of international relations.

Ms. Dorbach was asked about shaping the Institute's cultural policy. She pointed out that one of the most important points in the Polish Film Institute's strategy is supporting the production of short films and debuts.

"I see here [at the Polish Film Institute – editor's note] support for cinema which is engaged, personal, and shows emotions. I see space for the Institute to finance cinema which contributes something. My 'modus operandi' is for the audience to have access to valuable content."

"If anything is going to convince young audiences today, it's a short film!" – concluded the Director of the Polish Film Institute.

Our guest emphasized that one of the first actions she took was to increase financial resources for the promotion of culture:

"I place great emphasis on supporting education. That's why, last year, I decided to increase funding for film schools and allocate more funds for the promotion of culture. This is a completely natural step for me."

Another important aspect of the Institute's operations is its collaboration with experts who evaluate projects and submit their assessments to the Polish Film Institute (PISF) management. Kamila Dorbach emphasized her commitment to partnering with these experts:

"I trust the experts, I believe in their artistic and selective decisions. By confirming the experts' decisions, I take responsibility for a given film – because it is not the experts who make the final decisions, but me," the Director admitted, adding later in the meeting, "I confirm the will of the expert committees, which gives me the opportunity to appoint the experts I want to work with." :

During the meeting, Kamila Dorbach pointed out how important the operational programme for debuts is, although last year's selection of projects only showed the scale of needs and raised several doubts:

"The debut session exceeded the feature film session as more projects were submitted for debuts than for feature films. (...) You are young, everyone is thinking about making their own film – short, long, documentary, animated (...), but it's hard. (...) I would like you to be guided by a certain humility (...). I would also like, if the debut priority remains, for these experts to be there. Why? Because in three years, they will be responsible for what will become of these debuts. And I said, "These will be the best Polish films!"

The students’ questions revealed the need to build an engaged audience and the willingness to jointly implement activities aimed at attracting viewers to cinemas or other screens that could show Polish short films.

At the Friday meeting with the Lodz Film School community, the Director of the Polish Film Institute presented a clear vision for the institution she heads. She emphasized that the changes being implemented require time and collaboration, and the results will only be visible in a few years.

Thank you for this meeting and for an honest discussion!

photos: Anna Kazimierczak, Wojciech Bryndel