A film from the Polish Peoples Republic. Maciej Drygas as a historian? Cover Image

Jeden film z PRL-u. Maciej Drygas jako historyk kultury?
A film from the Polish Peoples Republic. Maciej Drygas as a historian?

Author(s): Małgorzata Kozubek
Subject(s): Theatre, Dance, Performing Arts
Published by: Akademia Sztuk Pięknych im. Eugeniusza Gepperta we Wrocławiu

Summary/Abstract: Maciej Drygas often compares his work to the work of an archaeologist. Preparations take him a lot of time. For each video, he works (mostly in archives) about three to four year. He visits the IPN, Documentary and Feature Film Archives, Polish Television, Polish Radio, film schools and even small archives of amateur film clubs scattered throughout Poland and private collections. He is not only a patient archivist, a historian, but also a detective. His film entitled ‘One Day in the People's Republic’ (2005) shows his fascination associated with discovering interesting material, and ends with such presentation of the matierial that makes the viewer to ‘feel’ the true moment. Drygas focuses on everyday communism. He shows the reality of one day when nothing unusual happens. He concentrates on the most characteristic aspects of the time-period which come alive in their basic dimensions. He uses the non-typical historic sources which can be considered as "ordinary", "transparent", everyday motifs. The film becomes a source of knowledge about appearances, gestures, attitudes, ideas, projects, imagination and experiences. The movie director is more than a historian: he is a cultural historian.

  • Issue Year: 2013
  • Issue No: 2 (16)
  • Page Range: 42-53
  • Page Count: 12
  • Language: Polish