Life aside, now it’s heist time – an interview with Jaśmina Polak

‘Klaps’ Newspaper Published on 25.09.2026

Jaśmina Polak w filmie "Exotic" Soni Orlewicz-Zakrzewskiej

– Dancing is a form of therapy. Since the beginning of civilisation, it was a form of dialogue between itself, music, finding relation with the rhythm of our world. For me, the body was always an essential tool for working. I feel and communicate much better through movement than through speaking – says Jaśmina Polak, whom you can watch in Exotic by Sonja Orlewicz-Zakrzewska

Weronika Zarzecka

Weronika Zarzecka: How much of Mila is in Jaśmina and how much of Jaśmina is in Mila?

Jaśmina Polak: The thing is, you put a part of yourself in every role you play. This story is based on Sonia's and mine shared experience and observations. It’s a path we both followed and Mila is its result. Doubts, uncertainty, a feeling of being judged, a sense of failure or self-esteem are things we regularly encounter in the world of pole dance, all the more so because we are literally standing opposite ourselves - in front of a mirror. Sometimes after training I cry in my car. And that’s wonderful in this sport.

Exotic is surprisingly light for a story that is in fact about struggle - both on a pole and in one’s mind. To which of these two were you closer during the making of this project? In Mila’s part, how much is pleasure and how much sacrifice?

My biggest luck is experiencing this adventure with a close friend. From the very beginning Sonia and I have been in the same box, and that gave us a new perspective on our own observations, constantly reminding us that after all, it’s all about having fun. That’s why Mila, going to training camp without a friend, loses this kind of reliance and suddenly becomes her own inner critic. That’s what her victory is also about, that she starts to support herself, even though previously she got that from another person.

This lightness that you talk about is Mila’s triumph, finding humour and distance on a foreign ground. As I have mentioned, in our world of pole dance and in any other sport, you continually commit to it, leading yourself to pain, bruises, injuries, frustration - all of this just for a short moment when you achieve an effect you can be proud of. It really is a commitment but also a pleasure and sense.

How did your first encounter with this world look?

For the first pole dance class I went together with Sonja. Not so long after we both agreed that in addition to sport training we would like to try exotic. We sent ourselves many inspirations, and one of our great loves was Polina Larovski. The moment we saw her we screamed “God, that is exactly what we are looking for!”

It turned out that Polina teaches pole dance in Warsaw, so we immediately signed in there. And that’s how it all started. I remember that Martyna Dominikowska, the owner of the studio and coach, said to me “It’s not your level, darling, you have to learn the basics first. But if you have such an approach that you will not get discouraged because you lag behind and you will train mindfully, then try.” I’ve been trying till today.

In Warsaw we have many opportunities to train with remarkable people, who do this sport in their own way and you can learn a lot from them. And primarily unexpectedly find new friends. I could even call this a family, except for my own bubble. For me, this film is first and foremost about this - a community, with which if it hadn’t been for pole dancing I would have probably never met. About community as a fundamental social cell, thanks to which an individual can fully grow. About the superiority of a community over “environment”, human environment, of course.

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Does the body understand the character first, before the mind does? How much this physical strain, for instance pole dance, gets you nearer to the role?

In the case of this film for sure, it’s about dancing after all. It’s banal but dancing is a form of therapy not without a reason. Since the beginning of civilisation, it was a form of dialogue between itself, music, finding relation with the rhythm of our world. Movement is an expression of sound together with the language we speak. For me, the body was always an essential tool for working. I feel and communicate much better through movement than through speaking. All of my favourite roles in theatre are the ones, where a word is in the second place or isn’t there at all. As I have mentioned, yes, dancing is a strain but one of a kind thanks to which I think not only of blowing my brains out. You ask me about the role but here I’m Mila. This film is rather a documentation of a process than a fictional creation.

Documentation of a process that has inspired Exotic itself?

Sonja came up with the idea for Exotic, she went to exotic pole dance training camp alone. We were supposed to go together but unfortunately at the same time I had to be on a series set and eventually couldn’t go with her. The film is exactly the record of Sonja's authentic experience, observations and growth. And because in her films I always play her, I became Mila. It’s a film about us two.

I feel that Exotic keeps off grand, emancipatory phrases. It’s rather a film made by women for women.

It depends on how one understands the “emancipatory phrase”. I wouldn’t like to suggest to anyone what to find in this story for themself. One of the most important things I have heard on the set was how amazing that a film is in the making, thanks to which finally de-stigmatising exotic pole dancing happens. We live in times of opening and normalising conversations about sexworking. We should not forget that without strip clubs and striptizers’ work, exotic pole dance wouldn’t have existed. It’s absolutely emancipatory, that thanks to this I can put the shoes on myself and dance for my own pleasure.

And yes, the film is made by women for women, because we know well enough how the level of conversation about a female body in the public discourse looks. It’s worth highlighting though that the world of pole dance, exotic, strip, frame up it’s not only women’s world, we can see this in the film. We are all crushed by existing standards and I hope that even a few people after watching this film will tell themselves “I love being myself, I want to do things for myself”. I think the film is made by people for people. And, first and foremost, about people.
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Do you search for new challenges and opportunities to try yourself in new roles or do you treat it just like a job and an inseparable part of it? For you, where does the border between a private range and an ordinary craft lie?

It depends on the role, naturally. In every role an actor leaves a part of themself and gets something from the character in exchange. I love having an opportunity to immerse myself in a character, learn new things. I remember, when I was younger, I was convinced that if an actor, for example, plays a gangster, then he has to become a gangster first, rob a bank, kidnap somebody for a ransom, and so on. And I still like to imagine it that way. Life aside, now it’s heist time.

It was easier with Exotic because I have been in this role for two years already, and I perfectly knew those dilemmas, I could focus on training and developing new ideas. When it comes to differentiating between the private life and a job, I must say that even though the distinction is very important for me and I try my best to take care of the private life side, I still use my real, own emotions, instincts and intuition. I’m a body that fills this character, after all.

Do you feel like right from the start there’s a certain expectation of a societal manifesto from a film about women?

For me, it’s a very personal matter, this perspective of viewers’ expectations. Personally, I don’t have to dispute it, because if anyone expects a manifesto, it’s their issue. A manifesto can also be understood differently by each person. Personally, I don’t take this criterion into consideration when choosing what film to watch, but it’s obvious that I love wild, unpredictable, norm-defying characters.

And what criterion do you take in account as a viewer? Does your love for this job also means higher expectations for films themselves?

Conversely, my love for cinema means higher expectations for this job. I love going back to films, having a feeling that there’s always a new thing to understand. I love losing ground beneath my feet. And in things I do, I also look for it. I should think that it’s really rare to be so genuinely, decisively proud of what you have made. But I guess that’s what life is about - trying.