INFORMATION PORTAL OF THE MARSHAL'S OFFICE OF THE KUJAWSKO-POMORSKIE Region IN TORUŃ

The latest work by Krzysztof Zanussi is being produced in partnership with the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Film Fund. The director is also a recipient of the Marshal of the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Region Film Award named after Pola Negri.

Filming for Całopalenie will take place this week in the centre of Toruń and in the municipality of Zławieś Wielka. The film crew previously worked in Warsaw and will move to Bulgaria in June for the next stage of production.

In Całopalenie, the acclaimed director returns to themes that have defined his artistic identity for years: questions of spirituality, divine intervention, and the limits of human agency.

“Krzysztof Zanussi’s latest film refers to the existential dilemmas characteristic of the author’s entire body of work. These themes resonated particularly strongly in his recent films Eter and The Perfect Number, of which Całopalenie is a logical continuation,” states the Documentary and Feature Film Studio, which is producing the project. “Once again, Zanussi is not asking whether God exists, but whether and how we can directly experience His actions.”

The core of the film is the story of three protagonists whose lives intersect in strange and entirely inexplicable ways. Their relationships lead to reflections on how much control we truly have over our own lives and to what extent we are guided by a higher power.

Zanussi invited well-known actors from the younger and middle generations to join the cast. The film stars, among others, Ksawery Szlenkier, Karolina Kominek, Mateusz Rusin, Marcin Hycnar, Bartłomiej Kotschedoff, Michał Czarnik, Mateusz Więcławek, and Maria Mamona.

The project is co-financed by the Polish Film Institute, supported by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, and co-funded by European Funds and the budget of Kujawsko-Pomorskie Region under the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Film Fund.

Całopalenie is an international co-production carried out by the Documentary and Feature Film Studio in cooperation with foreign partners: RFF International from Bulgaria — where Zanussi also received support from the National Film Center — and Revolver Produzione from Italy.

This is the third production by Zanussi to be filmed in the region. In 1983, he shot A Year of the Quiet Sun in Toruń and Grudziądz — a love story between a Polish woman and an American soldier set in post-war Poland. The film became the director’s greatest artistic success, winning the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.

Earlier, in 1972, Zanussi directed the lesser-known Hipoteza in Toruń, starring Jerzy Zelnik and Stanisława Celińska. Set at the beginning of the 20th century, the film tells the story of a young scientist who witnesses a woman drowning in the Vistula River. Afraid to jump in himself, he is replaced by a passing coachman. Haunted by guilt, the professor ultimately leaps from the bridge, overcoming his own weakness.

Recipient of the Marshal’s Film Award

At 86, Krzysztof Zanussi remains one of the most distinguished figures in Polish cinema — a director, screenwriter, producer, and academic lecturer. Before dedicating himself to filmmaking, he studied physics at the University of Warsaw and philosophy at the Jagiellonian University, although he did not complete either degree. In 1966, he graduated from the Łódź Film School.

For nearly forty years, he served as director of the Studio Filmowe Tor, where he supported younger filmmakers including Krzysztof Kieślowski and Agnieszka Holland. He has directed films, theatre productions, and operas not only in Poland, but also in Germany, Italy, France, and Russia, while lecturing at film schools both in Poland and abroad.

Zanussi is a two-time recipient of the Golden Lions at the Polish Film Festival for Camouflage (1977) and Life as a Fatal Sexually Transmitted Disease (2000). He has also won awards at festivals in Cannes, Moscow, and Berlin. His achievements include four Polish Film Awards (Orły) for Life as a Fatal Sexually Transmitted Disease and a Lifetime Achievement Eagle Award in 2019. That same year, he received the Platinum Lions at the 44th Polish Film Festival in Gdynia for his lifetime contribution to cinema.

In 2024, he received the Marshal of the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Region Film Award named after Pola Negri.

Department of Promotion
Dariusz Czołgowski

18 May 2026