CAMERIMAGE FILM FESTIVAL TO COMMEMORATE LATE CINEMATOGRAPHER JERZY LIPMAN
Bydgoszcz, Poland – September 10, 2014 – Camerimage, the International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography, announced today that the late Polish cinematographer Jerzy Lipman will be celebrated at this year’s Festival as part of the special “Remembering the Masters” series.
A retrospective of Lipman’s award-winning body of work will be screened throughout the festival, which takes place November 15 – 22. Included in the retrospective series will be Lipman’s BAFTA Film Award nominated Kanal, Oscar® nominated Knife in the Water, and critically acclaimed dramas A Generation, The Ashes, Colonel Wolodyjowski, and Lotna.
“Remembering the Masters” aims to highlight the craft of the brilliant cinematographers who have passed away, and to provoke a discussion about the cinematic possibilities given by the films, which over the years, set the standards for what audiences watch today. In the moment of the digital revolution, both mental and technological, it is crucial not to forget about the fascinating history of cinema.
Jerzy Lipman is one of the most eminent cinematographers in Polish cinema history and is considered to be the co-originator of the famous Polish Film School movement. He contributed to the development of the Polish School just as much as the directors he cooperated with – Andrzej Wajda, Andrzej Munk and Jerzy Kawalerowicz.
Lipman endured occupation and imprisonment during World War II before he became a celebrated filmmaker. After his release in 1948, he soon joined the Cinematography Department of the National Film School in Łódź and graduated in 1952. As a student, he was the cinematographer for the documentary shorts of his colleague Andrzej Wajda – The Pottery at Ilza (Ceramika iłżecka) and While You Are Sleeping (Kiedy ty śpisz).
Lipman’s feature debut was a short story by Konrad Nałęcki from the Socialist Realist Three Stories (Trzy opowieści). He was a cameraman for Five Boys from Barska Street (Piątka z ulicy Barskiej), shot in Agfacolor and directed by Aleksander Ford, with whom he later cooperated as a cinematographer in Eighth Day of the Week (Ósmy dzień tygodnia). In one of the sequences he used Agfacolor.
Lipman and Wajda’s full-length feature debut was A Generation (Pokolenie). This film was not yet ideological, but it was the stylistic vanguard of the Polish Film School and the first movement in Polish cinema which assigned key semantic and dramatic functions to the visual aspect of a film. This elevation was first visible in Lipman’s camerawork for A Generation, Shadow (Cień) by Kawalerowicz, and another film directed by Wajda, Canal (Kanał), which was in conduct with Polish Film School rules and considered its first masterpiece. In these films, Lipman turned the camera from the rather slow and basic recording of action in pre-war and Socialist Realist cinema into a lively instrument of narration. Moreover, he used light and shadow on an unprecedented scale, not only as a narrator, but also a creator of metaphorical meanings.
Lipman showcased modern camerawork in the flagship movie of the so-called Polish New Wave, which included the Knife in the Water (Nóż w wodzie), Roman Polański’s outstanding debut. Lipman confirmed his versatility creating camerawork for successful, yet more traditional, films like Answer to Violence (Zamach) by Jerzy Passendorfer, Gangsters and Philantropists (Gangsterzy i filantropi), The Law and the Fist (Prawo i pięść) by Jerzy Hoffman and Edward Skórzewski, and a comedy of manners entitled Rozwodów nie będzie.
On the set of The Ashes (Popioły), Lipman once again collaborated with long-time friend and colleague Andrzej Wajda to help the director revive the Napoleon era and the atmosphere of bitter score-setting with the historical past in the adaptation of Stefan Żeromski’s epic. In this film, Lipman skillfully combined black and white film with the Franscope panoramic system for the first time in Poland (Dyaliscope was used earlier).
Other notable credits include Jerzy Hoffman’s Colonel Wołodyjowski (Pan Wołodyjowski), Jerzy Passendorfer’s Day of Purification (Dzień oczyszczenia), Bernard Wicki’s Das falsche Gewicht, Samuel Fuller’s Dead Pigeon on Beethoven Street (Martwy gołąb na ulicy Beethovena), Aleksander Ford’s Sie Sind Frei, doctor Korczak and Michael Haneke’s Lemminge.
Lipman’s tribute will join another retrospective taking place in honor of the late Oscar® winning cinematographer John Alcott as part of the special “Remembering the Masters” series.
About CAMERIMAGE
Now in its 22nd Edition, the International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography CAMERIMAGE is the most recognized festival dedicated to the art of cinematography and is the biggest international film festival in Poland. The unconventional format of the Festival, which awards films according to their visual, aesthetic and technical values, is a unique alternative to traditional film festivals.
CAMERIMAGE proves to be a great forum not only for presentation but also for further development of international moviemaking and provides a platform for young filmmakers to explore new artistic areas.
In addition to the Main Competition, the Festival offers a 3D Films Competition, Polish Films Competition, Student Etudes Competition, Documentary Films Competition, Feature Debuts Competition, Music Videos Competition, Camerimage Market, Camerimage Forum, special screenings and premieres, various reviews, retrospectives, meetings and also accompanying events such as art exhibitions and music performances.
Various presentations of modern film equipment and of the latest production and postproduction technologies (both traditional and digital) are also an inherent aspect of the Festival and have been organized with cooperation from companies such as Arri, Panavision, Kodak, Hawk, K5600, J.L. Fisher, Sony, Panasonic, KinoFlo, Technicolor, Canon, Zeiss and Red.
CAMERIMAGE is an extraordinary event where art and technology meet, creating a unique and unforgettable atmosphere. Please visit http://www.camerimage.pl/ for more information.
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