Polish New Horizons days prove to be the perfect venue for hot titles and emerging talent

One ​​year before its next premiere in the Horizons section of the Venice Film Festival, the directorial debut Polish director Damian Kocur's "Bread and Salt" screened for a select audience of industry tastemakers in Wrocław, Poland. In 2019, Jan Komasa's "Corpus Christi" played in the same showcase for upcoming films Poland before launching its Best International Feature Film campaign ahead of the 92nd Academy Awards.

This is an indication of the growing power of the New Horizons Film Festival in Wrocław and its branch industrial, Polish Days, that producers, festival programmers, sales agents and distributors from all over the world travel to the historic university town in the summer, with its Gothic and Baroque architectural marvels located on the Oder River.

Since its launch in 2013 in cooperation with the Polish Film Institute, Polish Days has become the first event to discover new Polish cinema, building on "the growing number of Polish films and growing interest" in the local film industry, said New Horizons industry manager Weronika Czołnowska.

The event has built an enviable track record. As well as kicking off the 2019 "Corpus Christi" award series, Polish Days was the springboard for Anna Jadowska's "Woman on the Roof," which premiered at the International Storytelling Competition in Tribeca this year, and “Roving Woman,” which was produced by Wim Wenders and featured in Tribeca's Viewpoints section.

Other recent hits include Anna Kazejak's "Fucking Bornholm" in Karlovy Vary and "Other People ,” which bowed out last year at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival.

Twenty-two projects were showcased at this year's event, which took place from July 24 to 26, including 10 films in early development and 8 ongoing projects looking for potential partners. Four other completed films were pitched to festival programmers, sales agents, broadcasters and streaming platforms as they sought to use the Polish Days as a springboard for international distribution.

The selection, Czołnowska said, offered a mix of new and established filmmakers working in a range of genres , from “classic drama, for which Polish cinematography is known and respected… to more experimental projects, thrillers, dramatic comedies, family films”. Many also incorporated elements of comedy and dark humour, something she described as "pretty fresh and new in Polish cinema".

Also strengthening the industry: 30% cashback introduced in 2019, which Czołnowska credited growing interest from foreign partners seeking to join Polish projects as co-producers.

The Polish Days program has grown from a small-scale event to an event with global reach. "It's not just that we've expanded outside of Europe...we also get [guests] from the United States, from Asia, from different corners of the world," Czołnowska said. p>

The 2022 edition attracted around 230 international industry guests, almost on par with the last pre-pandemic event. No further proof of its success is needed than the fact that the organizers no longer have to work to put the Polish Days on the map, according to Czołnowska. "Commercial agents, festival programmers and producers interested in a co-production with Poland are now contacting us to come to Wrocław."