“Our Folks: The Beginning”, directed by Artur Żmijewski, has taken cinemas by storm. On screens for a mere ten days, the film has already drawn an audience of over half a million and rules the box office chart for yet another weekend.

– This is a film in which everyone will find something for themselves: both those who know the story of the Pawlak and Kargul families very well, and those to whom they are complete strangers, because it is the perfect place to start – says Karol Dziuba, who plays Władysław Kargul.

The screenplay for “Our Folks: The Beginning” was written by Andrzej Mularczyk, based on his book “Każdy żyje jak umie”. It was Mularczyk who wrote the screenplays for the films that went on to become cult classics. The trilogy and its prequel, currently triumphing in cinemas, were inspired by real events. The character of Kazimierz Pawlak was modelled on Andrzej Mularczyk’s uncle.

Piotr Śliskowski is the film’s director of photography. Emilia Czartoryska is responsible for the costumes, Pola Guźlińska for the make-up, and Ryszard Melliwa and Marcin Dyakowski for the production design.

Everyone knew what they were doing. They carried out their tasks as if it were pure pleasure. And magnificent artists worked here – said Anna Dymna, who plays Pecynicha, recalling her time on set – everyone did it with joy. Rysiu Melliwa, a wonderful production designer and my long-time friend from Kraków, together with his colleagues sought out and conjured up beautiful locations. The care taken over the props, costumes and make-up was a delight. Everything authentic – no folksy kitsch. When I saw Adaś Ferency and Zbyszek Zamachowski in costume and make-up, I immediately loved them like brothers. When I saw myself, I was impressed too. Changed, yet real. And the girls plaited such beautiful, authentic caps on my head.

– The fact that I wear one pair of trousers in one scene and a different pair in another is no accident. There is a reason behind everything. For instance, I wear military breeches in the period after the Bolshevik war – says Karol Dziuba, who also let us in on a few make-up secrets. – They made us younger, made us older, weathered us, gave us a peasant’s tan – it is simply superb work. Our faces were never powdered, only painted, and always in an individually tailored way. It is a fascinating thing. Someone looks at your face and knows how to bring something out, how to hide something. It is remarkable. A thousand tiny brushstrokes every morning and suddenly you are 20 or 30 years older.

Krzysztof Łojan is the film’s executive producer. Radosława Burdzy is responsible for the set decoration. Jarosław Barzan is the film’s editor, and the score was composed by Paweł Lucewicz. The film is produced by Tomasz Kubski and Mikołaj Fajks of the CK Dezerterzy studio. The co-producers are TVN Warner Bros. Discovery, Sanit Trans, the Documentary and Feature Film Studios (WFDiF) and Xawery Konarski. The Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, where most of the film was shot (Muzeum Wsi Kieleckiej, Święty Krzyż), is a partner of the production. NEXT FILM is handling the distribution.

 

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“OUR FOLKS: THE BEGINNING”

Pawlak and Kargul – the heroes of the cult “Sami swoi” trilogy – were neighbours in a village in the Eastern Borderlands, in what is now Ukraine, before they settled in the Recovered Territories. And even back then, theirs was an explosive neighbourhood… “Our Folks: The Beginning” is a colourful tale in which petty squabbles intertwine with life’s great milestones. Larger-than-life characters, with great history in the background, take viewers on a sentimental yet gripping journey full of humour.

 

Cast: Adam Bobik (Kazimierz Pawlak), Karol Dziuba (Władysław Kargul), Paulina Gałązka (Nechajka Słobodzian), Weronika Humaj (Mania Ziębicka), Zbigniew Zamachowski (Kacper Pawlak), Katarzyna Krzanowska (Maryjka Pawlak), Mirosław Baka (Ziębicki), Wojtek Malajkat (the Priest), Anna Dymna (Pecynicha), Janusz Chabior (Wincenty Kargul), Adam Ferency (Wujko Pecyn), Agnieszka Suchora (Ziębicka)