‘Close-Up : Malgorzata Szumowska & Michał Englert’

Bozar welcomes one of the most powerful and original voices in the Polish cinema scene of the past twenty years: Małgorzata Szumowska. Her name stands out as an exception in the cinematic landscape of the region, having gained widespread attention almost from the beginning of her career. Together with her long-time collaborator Michał Englert, she will be present for two evenings at Bozar to discuss their artistic practice and the stories that inhabit their films.

Born in 1973, Szumowska is an alumna of both Kraków’s Jagiellonian University, where she studied art history, and Łódź’s famed film school. It was at the latter that she met Michał Englert, her close collaborator as co-screenwriter and cinematographer ever since. After a series of short movies that soon revealed her as a valuable new voice, she directed her debut feature, Happy Man (2000), nominated for the European Film Awards and awarded at the Thessaloniki Festival. From here she begins a solid and abundant filmography, present in all major competitions, of which stand out titles such as Elles, starring Juliette Binoche; Body, Best Director at the Berlinale; or Mug, Grand Prize of the Jury at the same festival. In 2023, her last film “Women of...” was presented at the Venise International Film Festival in the main competition.

Michał Englert has collaborated with Małgorzata Szumowska since their years at film school. A cinematographer, screenwriter, producer, and director, he contributed to the creation of The Congress by Ari Folman, as well as numerous other films. What sets his work apart is the naturalistic nuance of his cinematography, which imparts a refined delicacy to the films, creating a contrast to the intensity of the subjects explored.

Co-organized by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute as part of the international cultural program of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2025