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Innocent Sorcerers and the most difficult time in my life

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Lotna: After the premiere
Andrzej Wajda Film-maker
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Pojawiły się druzgocące recenzje. Pamiętam, że rano poszedłem i kupiłem wszystkie gazety jakie były o premierze, no i wszystkie gazety postarały się napisać recenzje jedna w drugą druzgocące. Przeczytałem te gazety, nawet nie w domu, a w Saskim Ogrodzie. Potem zrozumiałem coś i nawet jakby dla siebie samego stworzyłem taki... przyszła mi do głowy taka myśl, że być może moje błędy są bardziej oryginalne niż moje zalety. Moje zalety mają inni reżyserzy, natomiast błędy to są moją własnością i może w tych błędach jest moja cała oryginalność. W związku z tym nie chodziło mi o to, żeby się bronić przed tym, bo sam wiedziałem, że gdybym ja ten film robił kilka lat później, kiedy byłem już o wiele bardziej doświadczony i więcej wiedziałem w tego rodzaju filmie, no z taką inscenizacją. Poza tym już byli i jeźdźcy, którzy mogli grać, aktorzy, którzy mogliby brać w tym udział – no, zupełnie inna sytuacja. Pewnie film byłby bez porównania lepszy, ale wtedy mi przyszło to pierwszy raz do głowy, że może właśnie moje błędy, moje słabości są oryginalne, a to reszta to i wszyscy umieją, inni reżyserzy też. I tych błędów, że tak powiem, starałem się już wtedy nie tyle nie unikać, co je wyolbrzymiać. I to było najważniejsze, co wyciągnąłem z filmu Lotna.

The reviews were devastating. I recall that in the morning, I bought all the newspapers that had reviewed the premiere and every one of them had tried to write an absolutely crushing review. I read them, not at home but in the Saski Gardens. Then, I understood something and even created this... a thought came into my head that perhaps my mistakes were more original than my merits. Other film directors had the same merits as I, whereas my mistakes were my own and my originality lay in those mistakes. Therefore, I wasn't concerned with defending myself because I knew that had I made that film a few years later when I was far more experienced and knew more about that kind of film, with that sort of staging... Besides, by then there were riders who could have been played by actors - it was a completely different situation. The film would have been incomparably better but then for the first time it occurred to me that my mistakes and weaknesses are unique, whereas everyone was capable of the rest, including other film directors. So I no longer tried to avoid these mistakes but instead I exaggerated them. This was the most important thing that I got from this film, Lotna.

Polish film director Andrzej Wajda (1926-2016) was a towering presence in Polish cinema for six decades. His films, showing the horror of the German occupation of Poland, won awards at Cannes and established his reputation as both story-teller and commentator on Poland's turbulent history. As well as his impressive career in TV and film, he also served on the national Senate from 1989-91.

Listeners: Jacek Petrycki

Cinematographer Jacek Petrycki was born in Poznań, Poland in 1948. He has worked extensively in Poland and throughout the world. His credits include, for Agniezka Holland, Provincial Actors (1979), Europe, Europe (1990), Shot in the Heart (2001) and Julie Walking Home (2002), for Krysztof Kieslowski numerous short films including Camera Buff (1980) and No End (1985). Other credits include Journey to the Sun (1998), directed by Jesim Ustaoglu, which won the Golden Camera 300 award at the International Film Camera Festival, Shooters (2000) and The Valley (1999), both directed by Dan Reed, Unforgiving (1993) and Betrayed (1995) by Clive Gordon both of which won the BAFTA for best factual photography. Jacek Petrycki is also a teacher and a filmmaker.

Tags: Saski Gardens, Lotna

Duration: 1 minute, 59 seconds

Date story recorded: August 2003

Date story went live: 24 January 2008