The Big Five at the 50^th PFF

For the third time at the Polish Film Festival in Gdynia – The Big Five – five filmmakers will reveal which Polish films are especially close to their hearts – films that have shaped who they are today and never cease to amaze them This year, the Big Five comprises Sonia Bohosiewicz, Ewa Braun, Agnieszka Holland, Marcin Koszałka and Marek Koterski.

The screenings will be a unique opportunity to revisit the evergreen classics – the beating heart of our cinema – and discoveries of the last decade. Each presentation will star the film and the filmmaker who selected it. After the screening, we will find out what made the filmmaker choose the particular film, what kind of audience member they are, and what shaped their perspective on cinema. The conversation will bring film buffs together – filmmakers and viewers. After all, filmmakers are also viewers – sensitive and passionate – though we rarely get to ask them about films other than the ones they make.

Sonia Bohosiewicz chose two shorter films by Janusz Majewski: Avatar or Exchange of Souls and Ja gorę!, Ewa Braun – The Gateway of Europe by Jerzy Wójcik, Agnieszka Holland – The Lure by Agnieszka Smoczyńska, Marcin Koszałka – Hospital of the Transfiguration by Edward Żebrowski, and Marek Koterski – Ashes and Diamonds by Andrzej Wajda.

The Big Five:
Sonia Bohosiewicz – Avatar or Exchange of Souls and Ja gorę!, directed by: Janusz Majewski
Ewa Braun – The Gateway of Europe, directed by: Jerzy Wójcik
Agnieszka Holland – The Lure, directed by: Agnieszka Smoczyńska
Marcin Koszałka – Hospital of the Transfiguration, directed by: Edward Żebrowski
Marek Koterski – Ashes and Diamonds, directed by: Andrzej Wajda

The 50^th Polish Film Festival in Gdynia will take place on 22^nd–27^th September 2025. The producer of the Festival is the Pomeranian Film Foundation in Gdynia.