Category: Polish Film Festival

Polish Film Festival Anniversary Screening
Current · Polish Film Festival · Seattle Gdynia Sister City Association · Seattle Polish Film Festival

Polish Film Festival Anniversary Screening

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The Seattle Polish Film Festival is the second longest running film festival in the US; and this year celebrates 25 years!  Attendees walked the red carpet and had their photos taken with directors and actors from Poland.  Zbigniew Banas, from Chicago, emceed the celebration at Pacific Place Theaters giving a short history and introducing our guests from Poland.  View photos by clicking here.

Below: Actor Lukas Simlat with Zbyszek Pietrzyk and wife; Zbigniew Banas with host; and Actor/Director Janusz Chabior chatting it up with film-goers.

Current · Polish Film Festival · Seattle Gdynia Sister City Association · Seattle Polish Film Festival

By Stanley For Stanley

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The Seattle Polish Film Festival presented this compelling documentary that follows the developing friendship of a young boy and an artist both of whom are disabled in the same way. The artist is older, wiser, and lived a life already filled with obstacles for which he has found solutions or simply devised a state of mind to deal with the lack of arms. Only going to prove that if someone is determined, goals can be reached despite disabilities.

Director, Monika Melen was present and spent close to 30 minutes answering questions before a crowd of 40 guests. Click here for photos.

Film festival guests Monika Melen and Maciej Sobieszczanski were both on hand and will continue to be throughout the Seattle Polish Film Festival  which runs thru October 29, 2017.

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Current · Polish Film Festival · Seattle Gdynia Sister City Association

Yiddish Celebration a Success!

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About 100 people attended the Seattle Polish Film Festival’s Yiddish celebration complete with Klezmer Music. Sasha Senderovich, assistant professor at University of Washington gave an enlightening presentation on the history of Yiddish films, followed by “Yiddle with a Fiddle” starring Mary Picon. Afterwards Peter Lippman talked about Klezmer music and we were treated to a musical performance by Klezmer Local #206.

You can view all the imaged by clicking here.

Festival continues thru October 29, 2017.

 

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Photo Above: Dr. Jerry Strassman, Carol Strassman, Mrs. Sarah Gortler, Teresa Davis, Joshua Gortler, Holocast Survivor/President Emeritus of Kline Galland

https://beta.worldcat.org/archivegrid/data/50508873

Photo Below: Zbyszek Pietrzyk, Steven Baral (Past President Holocaust Center for Humanity in Seattle/ CEO Doncaster Investments), Teresa Davis

https://mag.jewishinseattle.org/articles/2017/4/5/due-to-the-kindness-of-strangers-a-family-exists-today

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Polish Film Festival

2015 Seattle Polish Film Festival opens to great success!

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SPFF15-20006It was a great week for the 23rd Annual Seattle Polish Film Festival. We opened with a complimentary screening of a Polish cult comedy called “Sexmission” at Northwest Film Forum. About 50 guests enjoyed light snacks prepared by the Seattle Gdynia Sister City Association, producers of this annual event. Next up was our first ever “Vodka and a Drop of Art” featuring 30+ vintage Polish posters and of course, vodka! Friday, Saturday and Sunday featured some great films including “Gods” the true story of Dr. Religa, the surgeon who performed the first successful heart transplant in Poland. The festival continues thru October 18, 2015. Hope to see you there!

To see more festival images click here:
Vol. One
Vol. Two
Vol. Three

Current · Polish Film Festival

Seattle Polish Film Festival parties on…

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Special guests Arkadiusz Wojnarowski, film producer and Aleksandra Hamkalo, actress were on hand for the October 19 and 20 screenings (SIFF) and reception held at tenMercer. There were gifts for our guests and a birthday cake for Aleksandra. Film festival runs thru Sunday, October 21. View more images here.

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Polish Film Festival · Seattle Gdynia Sister City Association

Slovenian Director, American writer = Polish Film

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What a combination. But for us it yielded a finely tuned collage of what happens on Christmas Eve in Warsaw. We met characters looking for love, building up trust again, and coming alive when strangers enter the picture. Mitja Okorn, director, was born in Slovenia. He met up with Sam Akina, an American writer, producer, director to collaborate on “Letters to Santa” which garnered a third best film opening in Polish cinema history (post 1989) We thank them for presenting their film to Seattle audiences at the 20th Annual Seattle Polish Film Festival. View reception photos here.

Polish Film Festival

Seattle Polish Film Festival at Uptown Cinema

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Jakub Michalski is surrounded by fans at the Seattle Polish Film Festival held at ten mercer. Jakub’s company, Old Garden produced the feature film “Snow Queen”. Also present at the reception were filmmaker and writer Antoni Krauze, producer Kazimierz Beer and actress Ewa Kasprzyk.  The festival runs thru November 13.  To see more images from the reception click here.

Polish Film Festival

18th Annual Seattle Polish Film Festival

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Special guest, actress Katarzyna Figura and Dr. Michal Friedrich (SPFF Artistic Director) smile for the camera at the festival’s opening gala held at Center for Wooden Boats on Lake Union.  She appears in “Wonderful Summer” by Ryzard Brylski.  Also in attendance is director Ryzard Brylski.  Click here to view all the images.

Katarzyna Figura and Dr. Michal Friedrich

 

director Ryzard Brylski

 

 

Polish Film Festival

17th Annual Seattle Polish Film Festival highlights

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Once again the Seattle Gdynia Sister City presented the 17th Annual Seattle Polish Film Festival. I was on hand for the opening night screening of “Warsaw Dark” with special guest Leslaw Zurek, a young stage and cinema actor from Wroclaw, Poland.  His biggest wish was to visit Roslyn!

Next up was the Festival Gala. Supporters of the festival were invited to a red carpet affair and meet Szymon Bobrowski, another young television and film actor. He was special guest for the screening of “Hania” and “The Reliable System”.

You can view all the images here: http://www.gailannphotography.com/SPFF09/

My sister Barb hams it up with Leslaw Zurek.
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Leslaw says hello to our guests all the way from Racine, Wisconsin!

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Szymon Bobrowski walks the red carpet and autographs our poster…

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Szymon receives gifts from SGSCA President Debra Markert and Film Director Greg Plichta.

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Girls just wanna have fun on the red carpet…

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Polish Film Festival

SPFF presents Independent Film Award

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Michał Szcześniak receives SPFF Excellence In Independent Film Award during the 2008 Seattle Polish Film Festival reception for his short film “A Boat”.

To see more 2008 festival images click here! www.gailannphotography.com/SPFF08