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Poles, Georgians note similarities at festival

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Author:  David Lobzhanidze

Georgians learned a whole lot more about Poland this week in a series of cultural events marking the first-ever Art-Zone Poland Tbilisi festival. The idea for the arts fest was born in the mind of Magda Nowakowska, a Pole with strong ties to Georgia.

“My friend and I came up with the idea while were sitting in a cafe,” she said. “We were talking about how Georgians and Poles have a lot in common, but there are no events dedicated to our friendship. I said Poles and Georgians would understand, for example, similar historical films. So visitors also have the chance to watch films at the festival.”

The Communist-era satire “A Trip Down the River” was screened at the event.

“Besides the fact that we Poles and Georgians understand and like each other, we also share common interests,” Nowakowska said.

About 100 people gathered in 33a Club in Vake Park, an open-air space that was provided especially for the opening of Art-Zone Poland Tbilisi.

Polish photographer Justina Mielnikiewicz presented her most recent work from the region at the club.

“We also plan to show films and highland folklore combined with modern music,” Nowakowska said. “Drama groups which also stage performances against the war.”

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Polish photographer exhibits work

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Author:  David Lobzhanidze

Polish photographer Justyna Mielnikiewicz presented her latest work in Tbilisi this week as part of the Art-Zone Poland Tbilisi festival.

Over one hundred people gathered at the 33a Club in Vake Park to see the artist’s photos, which to the surprise of visitors were taken in film as opposed to digital format.

During the exhibition, Mielnikiewicz addressed the crowd, describing briefly her work.

“I joked before the event that painters have different periods like the ‘Paris period’ and ‘London period,’” she said. “My work here could be categorized as my ‘Georgian period,’ which has lasted for eight years and reflects my return to film.” However, the photos were also taken in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Iran, Turkey, Russia and Ukraine.

When speaking about her interest in the region, Mielnikiewicz said she was always interested more in the East than the West.

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Batumi hosts int’l movie festival

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Author:  David Lobzhanidze

The Batumi International Film Festival (BIAFF) announced its award winners this week.

“Opium War,” by Afghan filmmaker Siddiq Birmak, won the coveted Grand Prix. The film is a drama about two U.S. soldiers who stumble upon a Russian tank inhabited by Afghanis. The award for best documentary went to the U.S.-Norwegian film, “Letters to the President.” Vasily Sigarev was named the top director of the festival for the Russian film, “Volchok.”

Festival organizer Zviad Eliziani said the event was a success.

“The festival all in all was a success compared to last year,” Eliziani told Georgia Today. “The guests included more well-known names than in previous years. The program was also very interesting. We had prominent guests from the Netherlands, France and other countries. We were also more experienced technically.”

One of the novelties at this year’s festival was using subtitles as opposed to dubbing -- a rarity for Georgian theaters, he said.

“Films are not usually dubbed abroad, whereas subtitles are a common thing. This was truly a novelty for Georgia. Another new addition was that we included a competition for young filmmakers this year,” Eliziani said.

The competition for young filmmakers covered six categories. Awards were given to movies from Iran, the Netherlands, Spain and Poland.

Eliziani said the competition is important as these young filmmakers may later produce blockbuster films.

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