We talk to the director of the Etiuda & Anima Festival about the original concept of a review of student etudes, animation today and outcomes of confrontations between works by pupils and masters.
Justyna Skalska: The 30th anniversary edition of the festival encourages reflection. How has the event formula evolved over the years?
Bogusław Zmudziński: The Etiuda Festival emerged as an event complementing the International Short Film Festival in Kraków which showcased student etudes. Ever since the start in 1994 its aim was to be a fully independent event, exploring fields rarely found at other film reviews. In 2005, we developed a separate international competition devoted to artistic animation. We also changed the name of the event to Etiuda & Anima. The International Anima Competition was an opportunity for students to compete against professionals – frequently their own lecturers – while the prize would open the doors to a professional career.
Much has changed since, including in visual culture as a whole. We are seeing art cinema atrophying, although it does remain powerful in certain genres. One of the final bastions is film education. Art cinema is also supported by festivals, including Etiuda & Anima.
Where did the idea for the festival come from?
As a diligent participant in film festivals, I noted that they very rarely feature works made by students. I had this idea that it would be great to show the achievements of film schools to audiences beyond academic circles, art house cinemas and other festivals. We quickly emerged on the international arena.
The final shape of the festival was also influenced by the idea of awarding filmmakers who are active artists and pedagogues at the same time. This is why I founded the Special Golden Dinosaur award. This has allowed to host such great Polish artists as Kazimierz Karabasz, Grzegorz Królikiewicz, Jerzy Kucia and Hieronim Neumann, as well as internationally-acclaimed directors Martin Šulík and Werner Herzog and the cinematographer Sławomir Idziak.
How has the style of the works by young directors and animators changed over the years?
To be honest, the etude format hasn’t changed much since Polański and his output. The main difference is the media used to make films: once it was 16 and 36 mm film, now everything is recorded digitally. This means the length of films submitted to the competition has changed considerably. In the early days, they were significantly shorter because film was expensive – and in limited supply at film schools. Contemporary digital formats are far cheaper and more convenient.
In turn, animation has undergone major changes due to the development of digital technologies, even though this hasn’t necessarily had a positive effect on quality.
In terms of themes, students of course remain sensitive to current events. It’s notable that certain themes emerge more frequently at different periods. A few years ago, for example, one of the most common topics was crisis of the family.
Where did and do students find inspiration?
First and foremost, from their own experiences. Young people bring a slice of their own lives to film schools. And since, inevitably, those experiences are still relatively limited, it’s fascinating to follow their careers as they develop.
Which directors who debuted at the festival do you recall most fondly?
An excellent homegrown example is Leszek Dawid, winner of the Golden Dinosaur in 2005 for his etude My Place. He is now an acclaimed director of feature films, and he has returned to the festival several times as a member of the jury. And I think his career is still gathering pace.
I’ve also been closely following the career of the German director Florian Gallenberger, winner of an Oscar for his short film Quiero ser [in 2001 – ed.], which we presented just five months earlier during the Etiuda Festival in 2000. Although the film wasn’t part of the competition, it was shown as part of a special review dedicated to the Munich film school. This is an example of a spectacular success. But let’s not forget that we are talking about art cinema which, after all, is a niche genre.
When we talk about the Cracovian festival, we simply couldn’t omit the legendary club Rotunda which shaped the extraordinary atmosphere of Etiuda & Anima for many years.
That’s right. It was there that my younger colleagues and I formed a film discussion group. Inspired by our French friends, we held the first festival dedicated to works by students at film schools. Rotunda was already something of a homestead of student culture – a unique spot on Kraków’s map – and after it closed we were genuinely worried that it would mean an end of Etiuda & Anima. We made a great effort to survive, and we succeeded.
What kind of future do you see for the festival?
It is my life’s adventure, and I am truly grateful for it! I hope for another 30 editions of Etiuda & Anima held every year – without me, of course… In any case, I am confident about the future – it is in the hands of young people who are best placed to continue and grow it.
I think that there is still a major demand for this kind of event in the Polish film industry. Etiuda & Anima acts like a lens focusing the most important elements of global cinema, especially beyond its mainstream. It’s also a unique space bringing together up-and-coming artists with acclaimed directors. The festival’s mission has always been – and will always be – intertwining youth with experience, promoting student cinema and appreciating works by masters of their trade.
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Bogusław Zmudziński
Graduate from faculties of law and philosophy at the Jagiellonian University, holder of a PhD in philosophical sciences. Founder and artistic director of the Etiuda & Anima International Film Festival. Member of the International Animated Film Association (ASIFA) and the Association of Polish Filmmakers. Co-author and editor of monographs dedicated to acclaimed filmmakers such as Werner Herzog, Roman Polański, Ingmar Bergman, Sergei Parajanov and Andrei Tarkovsky and to Polish animation.
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