“ASHES” AT THE TRIBECA FESTIVAL

Joanna Dudek's film enjoys great success. Her animated film “Ashes” will have its world premiere at the Tribeca Festival in New York City.

Tribeca Film Festival is one of the major independent cinema festivals in the US. It was traditionally held in spring in the New York district of Tribeca. This year, the event has been postponed to June. The idea for the festival dates back to 2001, and its creators included Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff. The organisers wanted to revive this part of New York economically and culturally after the September attacks. The program is always full of excellent films from around the world. 

This year, the animated short by Joanna Dudek was invited to the program. The protagonist of “Ashes” is Danuta, both the narrator of the film and the director's grandmother, who goes back in time to tell the story of her life. It is a sentimental journey to the moments spent with the love of her life, Edward. The narrative is told from the perspective of a mature woman whose feelings ignite anew thanks to finding letters from years ago. The vision of the past starts to blur and old feuds give way to good memories. With the help of letters, Danuta gets closer to her deceased husband, familiar places and objects return. Their life together in post-war Poland was not a bed of roses, the protagonists had to face many difficulties, a world rushing forward, where everything changes in the blink of an eye. Their love was the only constant.

In “Ashes”, the story woven by the heroine is a testimony to the old, a reality long since extinct. Although the patina of time has covered her memories, as the story goes on, they come alive in front of the viewer. The memory is preserved in objects that were part of Danuta and Edek's everyday life. When creating the animated film, the author was inspired by Man Ray's photographs and his original rayographs.

This year's edition of the Tribeca Film Festival will take place on June 9-20.

More information about the festival can be found here.