A cross-section of works by respected masters and new faces will take center stage at the American Film Festival in Poland (AFF), whose 13th edition will take place from November 8 to 13 in Wroclaw, Poland.
Founded in 2010 as the sister event of the New Horizons Film Festival, a showcase of independent and artistic cinema launched in 2001, AFF considers itself the first cinema event in Central Europe dedicated solely to the works of contemporary and classic American cinema.
“We are looking for those voices, those authors, those talents and inclinations, those waves of the most creative American films that show some emotion in the present moment,” festival director Ula Śniegowska said.
Similar to the long-running Deauville American Film Festival in France, which this year will host its 48th edition, AFF aims to highlight the breadth and diversity of contemporary American filmmaking.
Śniegowska describes last year’s inaugural film, “The French Dispatch” by Louis Anderson (pictured), as “an excellent example of the festival spectrum we cover,” from “studio films with an author’s stamp” to the smallest Indian films that showcase “new talent and trends” The new American movie.
“To please and appeal to audiences, this is usually done with bigger names. Fortunately, America has author names that are backed by studios, such as Wes Anderson or Jim Jarmusch, not to mention PT Anderson. Recognized names and talents that attract larger audiences.” “But we also want to go underground and look out there and also make demo films that are low-budget but also highly creative.”
The selection process derives naturally from events that showcase the best in the American independent film industry, with many titles in Wroclaw showing their firsts at festivals such as Sundance, SXSW or Tribeca. Śniegowska says the programming team also has a call for public presentations that can “sometimes find films that haven’t yet appeared in the ring”.
The festival has two competition tracks, with the Spectrum section presenting a panorama of contemporary American cinema focusing on mid-career filmmakers and those making significant directorial appearances, along with the American Docs Realistic Film Competition. Last year’s winners, chosen by audience members, are Diego Ungaro “Down with the King” and Angela Washko “Queen of the Working Horse”.
Besides non-competitive sections highlighting the work of the most famous directors, each year AFF presents its Indie Star Award to a recognized expert in the independent film industry. Previous winners have included Todd Solondz, Jerry Schatzberg, Sarah Driver and John Waters (below), who accompanied his 2021 award and a retrospective with a performance of his stand-up show “This Dirty World” and a drag show featuring artists from all over Poland.
Rebel filmmaker John Waters wins an Indie Star award in 2021
Courtesy of the American Film Festival
This year’s award will be given to Nina Menkes, a veteran independent filmmaker known for her titles including the Locarno premiere of “Bloody Child” and “Phantom Love” and the documentary Brainwashing: Camera Sex – Power, which was shown at the Berlinale this year.
Another highlight of the festival is the “US in Progress” programme, which invites rough or final stage American fiction projects for final funding, pairing them with European buyers and the best Polish audio-visual production companies. This year’s event will offer cash and in-kind prizes totaling $100,000.
“It really is a great way to connect with American, independent, and small-budget filmmakers by inviting them to Poland at an early stage of their production,” Śniegowska said. “It’s great to have your first fans in Europe and to hear their comments [the industry]…and hear their criticism and support.” Among the show’s recent alumni is Pete Ohs, whose horror film “Jethica” premiered this year at SXSW.
Also on the cards is the first chapter of a two-part retrospective dedicated to Robert Altman, a prolific filmmaker who has been nominated for an Academy Award five times as director. “America Altman,” Śniegowska said, will highlight “those Altman films that are a sharp criticism of American society.” Next year, the American Film Festival will present “Altman Women,” a selection of the director’s films centered around women.
The program for this year’s American Film Festival has yet to be announced, although the festival has had an enviable record of landing critically acclaimed films, including Polish premieres for titles including “The First Cow” by Kelly Richardt, “American Utopia”. “Never Rare Sometimes Always” by David Byrne and Elisa Hetman.
Last year’s hybrid event drew 36,000 admissions for both in-person and online shows, a turnout that Śniegowska described as “very good” given the scale of the five-day event. However, she admits, “there is still room for growth.”
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