POLISH FILMS AT SHEFFIELD DOC / FEST
Two documents co-produced by Polish filmmakers were included in the program of this year's unusual edition of the Sheffield Doc / Fest festival.
Sheffield Doc / Fest is one of the most important documentary film events in the UK. The festival has been organized since 1994. This year's unusual edition of the festival will include two Polish-British productions - "Stolen Fish" directed by Gosia Juszczak and "Everyday Grayness " by Clary Kleininger.
The first documentary is about Gambia, which is the smallest African country where fish are running low. Since Chinese fish meal factories appeared there - most of them are processed into animal feed, sent to China and Europe. Despite protests, great neocolonial business is booming, and promises of new roads and hundreds of jobs turn out to be an illusory mirage. The stories of the fishermen Paul and Abou and Maria, who is selling the fish, create an intimate frame for stories about the stolen development of West Africa and the compulsion to look for a better life in Europe. This is the first film outlining the consequences of Chinese fishmeal factories in Gambia - which, despite operating there for only 3 years, is already bringing drastic effects. The movie trailer can be found here.
The protagonist of the movie "Everyday Greyness" is 26-year-old Magda, who has just left the closed rehabilitation center. The girl spent a year there healing herself from drug and alcohol addiction. However, she is not quite ready to part with this unique, isolated place and other companions in it. She comes up with an idea to go back to the center and organize an analog photography workshops. Harsh reality and fantasy intertwine in this place, that is free from the rules that govern everyday life outside. The teaser for the movie can be seen here.
A list of all films qualified for the program can be found on the festival's website.