The Madison Polish Film Festival is back! This year, the festival will take place on November 13 and 20 at the Marquee Cinema (located in Union South) on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. All screenings are FREE and OPEN to the public. Join us to celebrate Poland’s vibrant and universally recognized cinematic tradition!
The 2022 edition of the Madison Polish Film Festival will take place on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus on two consecutive Sundays before Thanksgiving – November 13 and November 20. Traditionally, all screenings will be FREE and open to the wider public and local community beyond UW-Madison students, faculty, and staff. English subtitles will be provided. Everyone is welcome! Zapraszamy na festiwal!
2022 MADISON POLISH FILM FESTIVAL
(click here to download the official 2022 MPFF poster)
The 2022 selection for the Madison Polish Film Festival includes:
Illusion / Iluzja (dir. Marta Minorowicz, 2022) | Running time: 1h 30 min
Sunday, November 13, 6:30 pm
Marquee Cinema, Union South
Room 245 (2nd floor), 308 W Dayton St, Madison
NOTE: A selection of short films will precede this screening.
Synopsis:
Many months after her disappearance, the mother of a missing daughter starts her own increasingly irrational investigation. At times she plays with reality, at others – she questions it. These experiences strengthen her observation skills, which eventually leads her to be able to perceive a miracle beyond boundaries. A film about the power of the human spirit, about searching for reconciliation and harmony against tragic circumstances.
Trailer:
F*cking Bornholm (dir. Anna Kazejak, 2022) | Running time: 1h 39 min
Sunday, November 20, 1:30 pm
Marquee Cinema, Union South
Room 245 (2nd floor), 308 W Dayton St, Madison
Synopsis:
A group of friends with their children go on a traditional long weekend trip on the Danish island of Bornholm. An incident between children will trigger a wave of crises in their relationships.
Trailer:
Black Sheep / Czarna owca (dir. Aleksander Pietrzak, 2022) | Running time: 1h 47 min
Sunday, November 20, 4:00 pm
Marquee Cinema, Union South
Room 245 (2nd floor), 308 W Dayton St, Madison
Synopsis:
Magda, a teacher in a Catholic high school, is hiding from everyone the fact that she prefers women, Arek has not been able to find a job for a long time now, and Tomek, a popular YouTuber, is motivated mainly by self-interest. The trouble starts when Magda, tired of living a secret life, decides to follow her heart and triggers a cascade of events. Asia breaks up with Tomek, the grandfather disappears, and Arek has problems with getting his life back on track. When troubles, conflicts, and desires that have been repressed for many years finally explode, everybody starts to live their own life. Or at least they think they do… Will every character find their own path to happiness?
Trailer:
Sonata (dir. Bartosz Blaschke, 2021) | Running time: 1h 59 min
Sunday, November 20, 6:30 pm
Marquee Cinema, Union South
Room 245 (2nd floor), 308 W Dayton St, Madison
Synopsis:
Diagnosed as an autistic child, Grzegorz lives in his own, hermetic world not being able to connect with others. When he is a teenager, it turns out that the cause of Grzegorz’s isolation is not autism but a deep hearing impairment, underneath which a great musical talent has been hidden for years. Thanks to a hearing aid, Grzegorz starts to discover speech, sound, and music, with which he falls in love. Grzegorz now desires to become a pianist and perform at a great philharmonic concert hall. But no one, apart from him and his family, believes that this deaf boy – though aided with new technology – will ever make his dream come true.
Trailer:
Location and parking
The Marquee Cinema is located in Room 245 on 1308 West Dayton Street in Madison. Parking is available on lots 80 (Union South Garage), 17, and 20, in addition to numerous UW and City of Madison parking options. The Marquee is located close to bus routes 2, 7, 8, 11, 12, 15, 28, 38, 44, 48, 70, 72, and 80.
For more information on South Union parking, visit this guide. For a guest user guide, see this booklet. To find the best bus route, visit the Madison Metro Transit trip planning guide.
Celebrating Polish cinema at UW–Madison since 1991
The annual Madison Polish Film Festival is co-organized by the UW–Madison Polish Studies program and the Polish Student Association in collaboration with the Department of German, Nordic, and Slavic+ (GNS+), Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia (CREECA), Wisconsin Union Directorate (WUD) Film Committee, and the Polish Heritage Club, Madison–Wisconsin. Inaugurated in 1991 by our longstanding Polish language lecturer Dr. Ewa Miernowska, the festival has quickly become an annual celebration of Polish cinema. Since then, it has attracted hundreds of viewers each year and is now a major cultural event at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the Greater Madison Area. In 2021, the Festival’s longstanding director Dr. Miernowska received a prestigious distinction from the Chicago Society for Arts for her outstanding merits in promoting Polish cinema in North America. The award ceremony took place at the Polish Film Festival in America in Chicago.
Donate to UW–Madison Polish Studies program
The UW–Madison Polish Studies program is actively involved in researching, teaching, and promoting Polish film, language, literature, and culture. Since its establishment more than 80 years ago, our faculty has trained hundreds of students in these areas and disciplines, in addition to organizing numerous events such as the annual Madison Polish Film Festival. If you would like to help us continue our rich tradition of promoting Polish culture in Wisconsin and beyond, consider donating to our program using the Donate banner below. You can also consider setting up a fund to support our students or faculty in their studying, teaching, research, or outreach activities. To learn more about our program and what we do, click here.
Questions? Email Rebecca Forbes Wank, our Financial Specialist, or Dr. Łukasz Wodzyński, our Professor of Polish, to start the conversation today.
More from the #UWPolish blog:
UW–Madison Dr. Ewa Miernowska Recognized for Her Work in Promoting Polish Film
Students’ Mapping Projects Explore Diverse Heritage of Poland, Central Europe
Was There a Viking Poland? An Expert Discusses Archeological Facts and Myths
Film & Music Event in Madison Explores Chopin’s Unknown Connection to the Americas
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UW–Madison Polish Studies Program
Educating the Wisconsin public about the Polish language, literature, and culture since 1936.
The University of Wisconsin–Madison Polish Studies Program is the oldest academic program in the United States focused on the study and teaching of the Polish language, literature, and culture. UW–Madison Polish studies offer a comprehensive package of Polish language, literature, and culture courses, a generous scholarship program designed exclusively for its students, and various extracurricular activities each academic year.
The program, dating back to 1935, offers beginning, intermediate, and advanced Polish language courses, in addition to intensive Polish courses for heritage speakers and (under)graduate students. In 2011, the program received the prestigious 2022 Award Distinction from the University of Warsaw for its achievements in promoting the Polish language and knowledge about Polish culture and history. The UW–Madison Polish program also offers a broad range of Polish culture courses on Polish film, contemporary Polish culture, Polish migration to the Americas, a survey of Polish culture from the Middle Ages to modern times, Polish comedy culture, and post-communism.
Each year, the UW Polish program awards scholarships for tuition through the Lapinski fund to undergraduate and graduate students studying the Polish language, literature, and culture. The Polish Student Association (PSA) provides a space for all students interested in events, activities, and learning about Poland and Polish culture. In collaboration with the Polish program faculty, the PSA also co-organizes the Madison Polish Film Festival, an annual celebration of Polish cinematography in Madison, Wisconsin, now more than 30 years old.