Polański honoured in home city of Kraków
PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge
02.05.2015 10:01
Director Roman Polański was honoured in the Polish city where he grew up on Friday during the opening ceremony of the 8th PKO Off Camera Festival.
Roman Polanski (C) receives the 'Against the Current' award at the 8th PKO Off Camera Festival, with head of the Polish Film Institute (PISF) Agnieszka Odorowicz (L) and actor Andrzej Seweryn. Photo: PAP/Stanisław Rozpedzik
Polański received the 'Against the Current' award, an accolade aimed at those who demonstrate artistic independence, carving themselves a distinctive niche in the film world.
Festival organisers stressed that Polański “defies labelling” and has never followed fashion.
“To American cinema he brought European doubts and non-compliance. To European cinema - American respect for the audience, discipline and professionalism.”
Polański, who hails from a secular Jewish family, survived World War II as his father arranged for him to be sheltered by a series of Catholic families.
Despite forging an international career, he continues to work with a partly Polish crew, most notably cinematographer Marek Edelman (Oliver Twist, The Pianist, The Ghost Writer, Carnage).
The 81-year-old director plans to make his next film in Poland. The project is an adaptation of Robert Harris's thriller 'An Officer and a Spy', which explores the Dreyfus Affair, a notorious miscarriage of justice in pre- World War I France.
Polański remains a wanted man in America, and US authorities are attempting to have the director extradited from Poland over a 1978 case of unlawful sex with a minor.
The PKO Off Camera Festival celebrates independent film, with the main prize of USD 100 dollars strictly reserved for debut or second-time directors.
The current edition runs until 10 May. Previous recipients of the Against the Current award include Tim Roth and Jane Campion. (nh)