My favourite Polish filmmakers

1. Janusz Zaorski

Janusz Zaorski was born on September 19, 1947 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland. He is a director and writer, known for Matka Królów (1987), Pokój z widokiem na morze (1978) and Szczesliwego Nowego Jorku (1997). He is married to Anna Osmólska-Metrak.

2. Jerzy Kawalerowicz

Director | Pociag

Jerzy Kawalerowicz was born on January 19, 1922 in Gwozdziec, Stanislawowskie, Poland [now Hvizdets, Ukraine]. He was a director and writer, known for Night Train (1959), Mother Joan of the Angels (1961) and Death of a President (1977). He was married to Lucyna Winnicka, Maria Güntner and ...

3. Tadeusz Konwicki

Writer | Lawa. Opowiesc o 'Dziadach' Adama Mickiewicza

Tadeusz Konwicki was born on June 22, 1926 in Nowa Wilejka, Wilenskie, Poland [now Naujoji Vilnia, Vilnius, Lithuania]. He was a writer and director, known for Lawa. Opowiesc o 'Dziadach' Adama Mickiewicza (1989), Dolina Issy (1982) and The Last Day of Summer (1958). He was married to Danuta ...

4. Ryszard Bugajski

Director | Przesluchanie

Ryszard Bugajski began his career working with Andrzej Wajda at Studio X in the late 70's. When he was pressured by the secret police to become an informant at the Studio, Bugajski vowed to try and bring down the Communist regime. To that end he shot his first feature film, "Interrogation", as ...

5. Krzysztof Krauze

Director | Dlug

Krzysztof Krauze was born on April 2, 1953 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland. He was a director and writer, known for The Debt (1999), Plac Zbawiciela (2006) and Papusza (2013). He was married to Joanna Kos-Krauze, Ewa Salacka and Malgorzata Szurmiej. He died on December 24, 2014 in Warsaw, ...

6. Wojciech Has

Director | Pozegnania

Born in Kraków, Poland, in 1925. Feature film director. Graduated in 1946 from Cracow Film Institute, also studied painting. From 1947 to 1957 made a number of documentary shorts and educational films. Feature film debut: _The Noose_ (Petla, 1958, co-scr.). Other films: _Farewells_ (Pozegnania, ...

7. Andrzej Wajda

Director | Katyn

Andrzej Wajda is an Academy Award-winning director. He is the most prominent filmmaker in Poland known for The Promised Land (1975), Man of Iron (1981), and Katyn (2007).

He was Born on March 6, 1926, in Suwalki, Poland. His mother, Aniela Wajda, was a teacher at a Ukrainian school. His father, ...

8. Roman Polanski

Director | Chinatown

Roman Polanski is a Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few truly international filmmakers. Roman Polanski was born in Paris in 1933.

His parents returned to Poland from France in 1936, three years ...

French-Polish

9. Krzysztof Zanussi

Director | Struktura krysztalu

Born in 1939 in Warsaw, Poland. Documentary and feature film director. Studied physics at Warsaw University and philosophy at Jagiellonian University in Cracow. Graduated from Lodz Film Academy in 1966. Amateur film maker. His school diploma film 'Death of a Provincial' (Smierc prowincjala (1968)) ...

10. Krzysztof Kieslowski

Writer | Trois couleurs: Bleu

Krzysztof Kieslowski graduated from Lódz Film School in 1969, and became a documentary, TV and feature film director and scriptwriter. Before making his first film for TV, Przejscie podziemne (1974) (The Underground Passage), he made a number of short documentaries. His next TV title, Personnel (...

11. Andrzej Munk

Director | Pasazerka

Andrzej Munk was born on October 16, 1920 in Kraków, Malopolskie, Poland. He was a director and writer, known for Passenger (1963), Eroica (1958) and Man on the Tracks (1957). He died on September 20, 1961 in Lowicz, Lódzkie, Poland.

12. Witold Lesiewicz

Director | Gwiazdy musza plonac

Witold Lesiewicz was born on September 9, 1922 in Bialystok, Podlaskie, Poland. He was a director and writer, known for Gwiazdy musza plonac (1954), Miejsce dla jednego (1966) and Boleslaw Smialy (1972). He died on March 23, 2012 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland.

13. Wojciech Smarzowski

Writer | Dom zly

Wojciech Smarzowski is a famous Polish screenwriter and director. He studied filmmaking at the Jagiellonian University and the National Film School in Lódz. He started his film career as a video camera operator. He received Polish Academy Award for Best Director for 4 times (2004, 2009, 2011, 2017)....

14. Jerzy Skolimowski

Actor | The Avengers

Born in Lódz, Poland, in 1938. Director, playwright, scriptwriter, and actor. Graduated in ethnology, literature and history from Warsaw University in 1959. Graduated from Lódz Film Academy in directing in 1962. Feature debut: _Identification Marks - None_ (Rysopis, 1964, scr., dir, act.), awarded ...

15. Roman Zaluski

Director | Sekret

Roman Zaluski was born on December 10, 1936 in Lida, Nowogródzkie, Poland [now Lida, Belarus]. He was a director and assistant director, known for Sekret (1973), Komedia malzenska (1994) and Wsciekly (1980). He died on November 29, 2022 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland.

16. Wojciech Marczewski

Director | Dreszcze

Wojciech Marczewski was born on February 28, 1944 in Lódz, Lódzkie, Poland. He is a director and producer, known for Shivers (1981), Escape from the 'Liberty' Cinema (1990) and Nightmares (1979). He is married to Teresa Marczewska. They have two children.

17. Wladyslaw Pasikowski

Director | Jack Strong

Wladyslaw Pasikowski was born on June 14, 1959 in Lódz, Lódzkie, Poland. He is a director and writer, known for Jack Strong (2014), Psy (1992) and Kroll (1991).

18. Feliks Falk

Director | Joanna

Feliks Falk was born on February 25, 1941 in Stanislawów, Stanislawowskie, Poland [now Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine]. He is a director and writer, known for Joanna (2010), Komornik (2005) and Bohater roku (1987).

19. Aleksander Ford

Director | Piatka z ulicy Barskiej

Aleksander Ford was born on November 24, 1908 in Kiev, Russian Empire [now Ukraine]. He was a director and writer, known for Five from Barska Street (1954), Knights of the Teutonic Order (1960) and The Eighth Day of the Week (1958). He was married to Eleanor Griswold, Olga Minska and Janina ...

20. Janusz Morgenstern

Director | Jowita

Janusz Morgenstern was born on November 16, 1922 in Mikulince, Tarnopolskie, Poland [now Mikulintsy, Ternopil Oblast, Ukraine]. He was a director and producer, known for Jovita (1967), Mniejsze niebo (1981) and Komornik (2005). He died on September 6, 2011 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland.

21. Marek Piwowski

Director | Przepraszam, czy tu bija?

Marek Piwowski was born on October 24, 1935 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland. He is a director and writer, known for Foul Play (1976), Psychodrama (1972) and Korkociag (1971).

22. Dorota Kedzierzawska

Director | Nic

Dorota Kedzierzawska was born on June 1, 1957 in Lódz, Lódzkie, Poland. She is a director and writer, known for Nothing (1998), Time to Die (2007) and Crows (1994).

23. Andrzej Zulawski

Writer | Possession

Born in Lvov, Ukraine; then he moved with his father Miroslaw Zulawski to Czechoslovakia and later to Poland. In the late 1950s, he studied cinema in France. In the 1960s, he was an assistant of the famous Polish film director Andrzej Wajda. His feature debut The Third Part of the Night (1971) was ...

24. Janusz Nasfeter

Director | Nie bede cie kochac

Janusz Nasfeter was born on August 15, 1920 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland. He was a director and writer, known for I Won't Love You (1974), Ten okrutny, nikczemny chlopak (1972) and Niekochana (1966). He was married to Teresa Nasfeter. He died on April 1, 1998 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland.

25. Janusz Majewski

Director | Mala matura 1947

Janusz Majewski was born on August 5, 1931 in Lwów, Lwowskie, Poland [now Lviv, Ukraine]. He was a director and writer, known for Mala matura 1947 (2010), Sublokator (1966) and Excentrycy, czyli po slonecznej stronie ulicy (2015). He was married to Zofia Nasierowska. He died on January 10, 2024 in ...

26. Walerian Borowczyk

Director | Docteur Jekyll et les femmes

Born in Kwilcz, Poland, Walerian Borowczyk trained as a painter and lithographer, winning Poland's National Prize in 1953. He began his film career as a film poster designer, then started making short animated films in the late 1950s. Moving to France in the early 1960s, he gained a reputation as a...

27. Piotr Szulkin

Director | Wojna swiatów - nastepne stulecie

Piotr Szulkin was born on April 26, 1950 in Gdansk, Pomorskie, Poland. He was a director and writer, known for The War of the Worlds: Next Century (1981), Golem (1980) and Ga-ga: Glory to the Heroes (1986). He was married to Renata Karwowska-Szulkin. He died on August 3, 2018 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie...

28. Kazimierz Kutz

Director | Paciorki jednego rózanca

Born in 1929 in Szopienice, Upper Silesia, to a railway worker's family. After graduating from secondary school he enrolled in the Directing Faculty at Theatre and Film School, graduating in 1954.

In 1959, he debuted with a film entitled Krzyz Walecznych (1959). He has gone on to direct over 20 ...

29. Jacek Koprowicz

Director | Medium

Jacek Koprowicz was born on November 3, 1947 in Lódz, Lódzkie, Poland. He is an assistant director and director, known for Medium (1985), Alchemik (1989) and Mystification (2010).

30. Jan Jakub Kolski

Director | Wenecja

Jan Jakub Kolski was born on January 29, 1956 in Wroclaw, Dolnoslaskie, Poland. He is a director and writer, known for Venice (2010), Jancio Wodnik (1993) and To Kill a Beaver (2012).

31. Stanislaw Rózewicz

Director | Kobieta w kapeluszu

Stanislaw Rózewicz was born on August 16, 1924 in Radomsko, Lódzkie, Poland. He was a director and writer, known for Kobieta w kapeluszu (1985), Drzwi w murze (1974) and Opadly liscie z drzew (1975). He was married to Irena Rózewiczowa. He died on November 9, 2008 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland.

32. Andrzej Baranski

Director | Kobieta z prowincji

Andrzej Baranski was born on April 2, 1941 in Pinczów, Swietokrzyskie, Poland. He is a director and writer, known for Kobieta z prowincji (1985), A Few People, a Little Time (2005) and Nad rzeka, której nie ma (1991).

33. Lech Majewski

Writer | Mlyn i krzyz

Lech Majewski was born on August 30, 1953 in Katowice, Slaskie, Poland. He is a writer and director, known for The Mill and the Cross (2011), Valley of the Gods (2019) and Wojaczek (1999).

34. Marek Koterski

Director | Dzien swira

Marek Koterski was born on June 3, 1942 in Kraków, Malopolskie, Poland. He is a director and writer, known for Day of the Wacko (2002), 7 uczuc (2018) and Wszyscy jestesmy Chrystusami (2006). He is married to Malgorzata Bogdanska. He was previously married to Iwona Ciesielska.

35. Izabella Cywinska

Director | Kochankowie z Marony

Izabella Cywinska was born on March 25, 1935 in Kamien, Lubelskie, Poland. She was a director and writer, known for Kochankowie z Marony (2005), Television Theater (1953) and Boza podszewka (1997). She was married to Janusz Michalowski. She died on December 23, 2023 in Poznan, Poland.

36. Juliusz Machulski

Writer | Seksmisja

Film director, script writer and actor. Born in Olsztyn, Poland, in 1955. In 1978 graduated from the Lodz Film Academy. 1984-85 studied in Cal Arts, Valencia, California. Winner of the Stanislaw Wyspianski Award for Young Artists 1985, and a number of festival honours. Since 1988 artistic manager ...

37. Stanislaw Lenartowicz

Director | Czerwone i zlote

Stanislaw Lenartowicz was born on February 7, 1921 in Dziankowo, Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Poland. He was a director and writer, known for Czerwone i zlote (1969), Pamietnik pani Hanki (1963) and Spotkania (1957). He died on October 28, 2010 in Wroclaw, Dolnoslaskie, Poland.

38. Krzysztof Lukaszewicz

Director | Orleta. Grodno '39

Krzysztof Lukaszewicz was born on February 29, 1976 in Szczecin, Zachodniopomorskie, Poland. He is a director and producer, known for Orleta. Grodno '39 (2022), Viva Belarus! (2013) and Lincz (2010).

39. Jerzy Antczak

Director | Noce i dnie

Jerzy Antczak was born on December 25, 1929 in Wlodzimierz Wolynski, Wolynskie, Poland [now Volodymyr-Volynskyi, Ukraine]. He is a director and writer, known for Nights and Days (1975), Chopin: Desire for Love (2002) and Noce i dnie (1978). He is married to Jadwiga Baranska. They have one child.

40. Olaf Lubaszenko

Actor | Krótki film o milosci

Olaf Lubaszenko was born on December 6, 1968 in Wroclaw, Dolnoslaskie, Poland. He is an actor and director, known for A Short Film About Love (1988), Sztos (1997) and Schindler's List (1993).

41. Tomasz Wiszniewski

Director | Where Eskimos Live

Tomasz Wiszniewski was born on June 1, 1958 in Lublin, Lubelskie, Poland. He was a director and writer, known for Where Eskimos Live (2002), Wszystko bedzie dobrze (2007) and We All're Made of Coal (2004). He died on November 20, 2016 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland.

42. Czeslaw Petelski

Director | Czarne skrzydla

Czeslaw Petelski was born on November 5, 1922 in Bialystok, Podlaskie, Poland. He was a director and writer, known for Black Wings (1963), The Depot of the Dead (1959) and Naganiacz (1964). He was married to Ewa Petelska. He died on September 19, 1996 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland.

43. Bartosz Konopka

Director | Lek wysokosci

One of the most awarded young Polish filmmakers. Graduated Film Science in Jagiellonian University Cracow, Krzysztof Kieslowski Film Department in Katowice University and Andrzej Wajda Master School of Film Directing. He makes both documentaries and features. Received over 30 awards for his films ...

44. Katarzyna Roslaniec

Director | Bejbi blues

Katarzyna Roslaniec was born on November 23, 1980 in Malbork, Pomorskie, Poland. Katarzyna is an assistant director and director, known for Baby Blues (2012), Satan Said Dance (2017) and Galerianki (2009).

45. Piotr Trzaskalski

Director | Edi

Piotr Trzaskalski was born on February 5, 1964 in Lódz, Lódzkie, Poland. He is a director and writer, known for Edi (2002), My Father's Bike (2012) and Mistrz (2005).

46. Pawel Pawlikowski

Director | Zimna wojna

A literature and philosophy graduate, with extensive post-graduate work at Oxford on German literature, Polish-born Pawel Pawlikowski started as a documentary filmmaker in British television.

His second feature, Last Resort (2000), earned him international critical acclaim at numerous festivals, ...