The shooting of the film ‘Our Revolution. A love story of Grażyna and Jacek Kuronia’, directed by Piotr Domalewski. It is a story about a love so great that it could change the world – and about people who paid a high price for fighting for freedom during the dictatorship. Jacek Kuroń is played by Arkadiusz Jakubik, and his wife Grażyna – known as Gajka – by Magdalena Popławska.
In the first photos from the set, we can see the main characters of this extraordinary story.
A STORY OF GREAT LOVE
‘Our Revolution. The love story of Grazyna and Jacek Kuroni’ is a tale of love that eludes dreams. But such a love did happen.
He – impetuous, loud, charismatic. She – courageous, delicate, full of warmth. Boundlessly in love with each other and convinced that together they can change the world – Jacek and Grażyna Kuroni. They give up their privacy to devote their lives to the fight for freedom. Their flat becomes the “headquarters” of the opposition – a meeting place for people ready to risk everything in the name of a better tomorrow. But a great idea also means a great price: moments of intense intimacy alternate with years of separation, when they are separated by prison bars. The outbreak of martial law forces them to make choices that no one would want to make. In such monstrously difficult times, can love prevail?
The role of Jacek Kuroń will be played by Arkadiusz Jakubik: – Up to the moment I walked onto the set I was stressed, but when we started shooting – I let go. I stepped into Kuroń’s shoes, but sewn to my size. I’m not trying to imitate him or recreate his characteristics. For me, as an actor, the most important thing is the man and his emotions – the audience follows. That is why my film Kuroń will not be a monument. I do not want to talk about him on his knees, but to show him as a flesh-and-blood man, with all his weaknesses. And at the same time – as a historical figure, the father of Polish freedom – he remains for me an authority and a hero of my time.
– Gajka was special – without her, his story might have turned out very differently. She did not write herself into the pages of history as clearly as he did, as did many women of the time. They were the ones who organised life in the shadows: they sent parcels to prisons, raised children, stood in lines, passed on information, fought for their freedom. They did everything so that men could change history. I am very happy that I can now speak about her,” adds Magdalena Popławska.
– For all my family, a film about Gaia and Jack is a very personal thing. The story of their lives is a ready-made script. We are waiting impatiently for the premiere,” says Joanna Liszkiewicz-Kuroń, daughter-in-law of Jacek and Gaia.
The film’s producer, Robert Kijak, emphasises: – The 45th anniversary of the August Agreements – a key event in the history of Poland – has just passed. Behind this historic moment stood people of flesh and blood who sacrificed a great deal to fight for freedom. Sometimes everything. I am glad that we can tell the story of Jacek and Grażyna Kuronia and that in doing so we can count on the full support and trust of their family – this is very important to us.
The director of the film is Piotr Domalewski, creator of such titles as ‘Silent Night’ and the recent ‘The Altar Boys’. – “Our Revolution” is a film that goes beyond the framework of a classic biography. The focus is on the most important period of Jacek and Gajka’s marriage – the period of internment during martial law and Grażyna’s illness. The communist period showed that people can be forbidden everything, but love cannot be forbidden. Love for another person and love for the Idea. This is what our film is about,” she says.
DON’T BURN THE COMMITTEES
Since last year, eminent documentary filmmakers Maria Zmarz-Koczanowicz and Jacek Petrycki have been working on the documentary ‘Don’t burn the committees’. The film will feature interviews with people who worked with and were friends of Kuroń, including: Adam Michnik, Seweryn Blumsztajn, Helena Łuczywo, Anna Bikont, Ludwika Wujec, Andrzej Seweryn, Jan Rulewski or Adam Wajrak. They will be juxtaposed with archival materials, including the story of Jacek Kuroń himself and previously unpublished recordings by Marcel Łoziński and Jacek Petrycki.
The documentary is produced by NEXT FILM, co-produced by Wytwórnia Filmów Dokumentalnych i Fabularnych in Warsaw and co-financed by the Polish Film Institute.
The premieres of both films are scheduled for 2026 – the year of the fiftieth anniversary of the June events in Radom and Ursus and the creation of the Workers’ Defence Committee.
