The Peasants
Original Title:
Chłopi
Duration:
105 minutes
Country:
Poland, Serbia, Lithuania
Language:
Polish with English Subtitles
Director(s):
DK Welchman, Hugh Welchman
This reimagining of Władysław Reymont’s Nobel Prize-winning novel recounts the bitter tale of a village called Lipce, held together by pride, patriarchy, and extremely strict tradition. As peasant Jagna reaches a conflict in her social life–forced to choose a lover between the village’s richest farmer, his eldest son, and other powerful men in the community–we see in full the timeless conflicts of the rich against the poor, the charismatic against the meek and the humble, the terrible liars against the dwindling tellers of truths. But what truly sets The Peasants apart as a distinctive film is not its story, but rather its near-tangible production design: every single frame has been hand-painted by a team of artists, creating a style of animation utterly unique to this particular production studio.
Quote:
“A free-spirited young beauty in late 19th-century rural Poland falls foul of the repressive patriarchy, the petty-minded jealousies simmering in her village and her own extremely poor judgment in this lavish rotoscoped and oil-painted animation.
(Wendy Ide - The Observer)
Awards:
+ Polish Film Festival: 2023 Winner Special Jury Prize (Main Competition)
+ Polish Film Festival: 2023 Winner Audience Award, Best Film
Presented By:
Consulate General of The Republic of Poland in New York
Sponsored By:
Heinz College DICE, University of Pittsburgh Slavic Languages and Literatures, The Polish Culture Club at Pitt, Polish Falcons of America, Kosciuszko Foundation
Event Schedule
Date:
March 22
Venue:
Harris Theater
Screening Time:
7pm
Doors Open:
6:30pm
Director Bio
A graduate from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw, Dorota Kobiela was awarded the “Minister of Culture scholarship” for special achievements in painting and graphics for four consecutive years. Through friends Dorota discovered animation and film, and immediately threw herself into learning these new artistic disciplines, attending The Warsaw Film School, Direction Faculty. She has directed one live action short film, The Hart in Hand (2006) and five animated shorts – ‘The Letter’ (2004), ‘Love me’ (2004), ‘Mr.Bear’(2005), Chopin’s Drawings (2011) and Little Postman (2011). Little Postman was the world’s first, and to her knowledge still only, Stereoscopic Painting Animation film, and won Stereoscopic Best Short Film at the LA 3D Film Festival, 3D Stereo Media (Liege), 3D Film & Music Fest (Barcelona).
Hugh graduated with a degree from Oxford University in Politics, Philosophy & Economics and a vague notion of wanting to make films. He supported himself through teaching history, selling carpets, and even selling fish, while he joined various grass roots film cooperatives in London. After a few disastrous experiences, where the drama was all behind the camera instead of in front of it, Hugh sought out training at The National Film & Television School, Producing Department. He got his first professional experience producing short films for Monty Python, and then set up BreakThru Films. In 2008 Hugh was awarded an Oscar for BreakThru’s first major production, Peter and the Wolf. The film also picked up several other top prizes including the Annecy Cristal and the Rose D’or. Peter and the Wolf premiered at a sold out Royal Albert Hall accompanied live by Philharmonia Orchestra, then at the Hollywood Bowl, and has since been performed at over 70 concert halls worldwide. His next film, Magic Piano & the Chopin Shorts premiered in Beijing’s Forbidden City with pianist Lang Lang, then at London’s South Bank Centre and New York’s Lincoln Centre, and has since been performed in 30 major venues around the world with live solo piano accompaniment. Aside from film Hugh has produced and edited the Graphic Novel series, HOUND, by Paul Bolger and Barry Devlin, winner of Best Graphic Novel, Best Story and Best Artwork at Irish Comic Awards.