F_CKING BORNHOLM wins an award at the 56th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival

Screening in the Main Competition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, Anna Kazejak’s “F_cking Bornholm” has been winning the hearts of audiences and critics from all over the world alike, and returns from the Festival with the Europa Cinemas Label award.

“F_cking Bornholm”, directed by Anna Kazejak and produced by the Warsaw-based Friends With Benefits Studio, represented by producer Marta Lewandowska, won the hearts of the audience of the international film competition at the Karlovy Vary festival. The film, starring Agnieszka Grochowska and Maciej Stuhr, dazzled with its directness and uncompromising spirit. This bittersweet tale of the relationships of today’s forty-somethings proves once again that cinema knows no borders.

Screenwriters Filip Kasperaszek and Anna Kazejak wanted to talk about break-ups in a light-hearted, no-holds-barred way. Roars of laughter in a 1,200-seat cinema, among an audience representing every nationality in the world, proved that they succeeded – because viewers are united by more than what divides them. “F_cking Bornholm” is not a film about break-ups. It is a film about how to fight for a relationship, as viewers confirmed during meetings with the filmmakers.

The film received the award presented by the Europa Cinemas network. The jury justified its choice as follows:

“The film is that passionate meeting of the expectations of pleasure and the questioning of reality. Director Anna Kazejak gives her main characters multi-layered personalities, while at the same time portraying them with great compassion. The humour is cleverly deployed, and the plot twists keep the film surprisingly engaging right up to the very end. As representatives of cinemas, we particularly appreciate this excellent European film made with the big screen in mind, as it is shot against beautiful scenery, and the immersive, powerful music supports the story nicely. We hope that audiences all over Europe will enjoy this film as much as we did!”

Here is what the most influential media outlets, such as Screen International, Variety, Cineuropa and The Film Verdict, write about the film.

Guy Lodge, Variety:

“[…] Writer-director Anna Kazejak’s precise, piquant film deserves wider festival exposure and heightened distributor interest following its international premiere in the main competition at Karlovy Vary.”

Davide Abbatescianni, Cineuropa:

“Anna Kazejak’s direction – as well as her screenplay, co-written with Filip Kasperaszek – successfully portrays people acting out their everyday roles. Just as society would expect. In truth, however, nothing connects them. While love, affection and kindness are clearly missing, they also share a common desire to escape responsibility and break the endless spiral of boredom and melancholy in which they are all trapped. (…) Kazejak delivers a solid film. Even though its main theme – the midlife crisis and the urge to ‘break free’ from duties and frustrations – is certainly not groundbreaking, she manages to hold the viewers’ attention in this well-balanced blend of psychological drama and (very) bitter comedy.”

Neil Young, Screen Daily:

“F_cking Bornholm manages to stand out thanks to its assured styling. Jakub Stolecki’s wide-angle cinematography temptingly captures the charm of the idyllic, pale sandy shores. (…) The biggest winner here, however, is composer Jerzy Rogiewicz, a newcomer to the big screen; his music thrillingly conveys the characters’ extreme emotions, even as they try to maintain a controlled, adult veneer.”

The film was represented at the festival by Maciej Stuhr (actor), Marta Lewandowska (producer), production designers Katarzyna Sobańska and Marcel Sławiński, Filip Kasperaszek (co-screenwriter) and director Anna Kazejak, who looked splendid on the red carpet in a gown by Anna Kuczyńska.

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