Interview with Małgorzata Szumowska & Michał Englert
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main cast technical details Alec Utgoff: Zenia Original title: Śniegu Już Nigdy Nie Będzie Maja Ostaszewska: Maria International title: Never Gonna Snow Again Duration: 113 min Agata Kulesza: Ewa Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 Weronika Rosati: Wika Format: 4K Katarzyna Figura: Bulldog’s owner Sound: 5.1 Andrzej Chyra: Captain Year: 2020 Łukasz Simlat: Wika’s Husband Original Language: Polish, Russian, French, Vietnamese Countries of Production: Poland & Germany main crew Production Companies: Lava Films, Director: Małgorzata Szumowska Match Factory Productions Co-director: Michał Englert Co-production companies: Mazovia Film Fund, Kino Świat, DI-Factory Scriptwriters: Michał Englert & Małgorzata Szumowska In Coproduction With: Bayerischer Rundfunk Cinematography: Michał Englert P.S.C. in cooperation with arte Production Design: Jagna Janicka With support of: Polish Film Institute, Film- und Editing: Jaroslaw Kaminski, Agata Cierniak Medienstiftung NRW, Deutscher Filmförderfonds, Sound: Marcin Kasinski MPSE, Medienboard Berlin Brandenburg, German-Polish Kacper Habisiak MPSE, Marcin Jachyra Film Fund, Cinecopro Award, Amsterdam Post Lab Costume Design: Katarzyna Lewińska Make up Design: Waldemar Pokromski logline A masseur from the East enters the lives of the rich residents of a bland, walled off community. Despite their wealth, the residents emit an inner sadness, a longing. The mysterious newcomer’s hands heal, his eyes seem to penetrate their souls. To them, his Russian accent sounds like a song from the past, a memory of their seemingly safer childhood. Zhenia, for this is his name, changes their lives. ne grey, foggy morning in a large, O Eastern European city, a mysterious person anymore. But maybe their appears – a man carrying a emptiness runs deeper? The bed. The visitor uses magical, loom the skyscrapers and masseur, an attractive man cranes of a city aspiring to from the authentic, exotic synopsis hypnotic techniques to get a residence permit and starts become an international hub, East enters their lives. He has working as a masseur in a the East constantly in pursuit a gift. His hands heal, his eyes suburban housing estate. The of the West. The identical penetrate the souls of the bland, gated community, built houses are inhabited by an lonely women. To them, his for the rich in the middle of array of well-to-do Russian accent sounds like what used to be a cabbage representatives of the upper the song of the past, a field, is walled off from the class to which we all peaceful melody of their 'worse' world around it. constantly aspire. They seem childhood, when the world Somewhere in the distance to feel an inner sadness, a was a safer place. Zhenia, for longing. Perhaps it is for the this is his name, changes their winter, which is no longer lives. present in this eastern country. Unlike them, their children don't build snowmen director’s Of', which won the Teddy Award at biography & f ilmography Berlinale. She returned to the Berlin festival with 'Body' in 2015 and 'Mug' in Małgorzata Szumowska 2018, which won her the Silver Bear for One of the most prominent Polish Best Director and Grand Jury Prize directors of today, Malgorzata respectively. Her first English language Szumowska was born in Kraków in 1973. feature, 'The Other Lamb' (2019) was She has directed, written and produced screened in Toronto, San Sebastian and feature and documentary films and has London. She recently completed a received numerous awards at short film for Miu Miu and has just international and Polish film festivals. finished her new feature 'Never Gonna After two well-received shorts, her first Snow Again‘. feature, 'Happy Man' (2000) was nominated 'Discovery of the Year' at the Selected Filmography European Film Awards and won the Małgorzata Szumowska Special Prize in Thessaloniki. Her 2020: Never Gonna Snow Again (Śniegu Już Nigdy second feature, 'Strangers' (2004) was Nie Będzie) presented at Sundance and Berlinale; 2019: The Other Lamb 2017: Face (Twarz) '33 Scenes From Life' (2008), won her 2015: Body(Ciał o) the Special Jury Prize at the Locarno 2013: In the Name of (W imię …) Festival. She later directed 'Elles' (2011) 2011: Sponsoring (Elles) with Juliette Binoche, and 'In The Name 2008: 33 scenes from life (33 sceny z ż ycia) 2004: Stranger (Ono) 2000: Happy Man (Szczęś liwy czł owiek) director’s which also won Englert the award for biography & f ilmography best cinematography at the Polish Film Festival in Gdynia, as well as 'In the Michał Englert Name Of...' (2013), 'Body' (2015) and Warsaw-born cinematographer, 'Mug' (2018), which all won awards at screenwriter and producer Michał the Berlinale festival. In 2013, Englert Englert is a graduate of the won the award for Best Cinematogra- Cinematography Department at the phy at the Sundance Film Festival for National Film and Theatre School in his work on Jacek Borcuch's 'Lasting'. Łódź, which is where he met He is keen to take part in international Małgorzata Szumowska. Their projects, such as Ari Folman's 'The documentary short 'Silence' (1997) won Congress' (2013) and Etienne Kallos' him an award for best cinematography 'The Harvesters' (2018), both shown in at a film festival in Mexico. Since then, Cannes. He was also responsible for the Selected Filmography Szumowska and Englert have made cinematography on Krzysztof Michał Englert over a dozen documentary and feature Skonieczny's loud, HBO-produced 2020: Never Gonna Snow Again (Śniegu films together, becoming a renowned series 'Blinded by the Lights' (2018), Już Nigdy Nie Będzie) artistic duo whose cooperation runs far based on Jakub Żulczyk's bestselling deeper than that of most directors and novel. cinematographers. Their filmography includes '33 Scenes from Life' (2009), awarded at the Locarno Film Festival, alec utgoff Born in Kiev, Ukraine, Utgoff moved to Great Britain at a young age. He graduated from Drama Centre London in 2010. Later that year, he appeared alongside Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie in German director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck's 'The Tourist'. He has also appeared in several notable big-budget productions, including Kenneth Branagh's 'Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit' (2014), Brad Peyton's 'San Andreas' (2015), David Koepp's 'Mortdecai' (2015) and Christopher McQuarrie's 'Mission Impossible – Rogue Nation' (2015). He has worked with such prominent actors as Kevin Costner, Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Gwyneth Paltrow and Ewan McGregor. Utgoff is also known for his roles in TV series, most notably in Season 3 of the Netflix hit, 'Stranger Things'. You shot ›Never Gonna Snow Again‹ soon Michał Englert: The script was originally deconstruct the metaphysical layer, interview after your English-language debut, the set in Australia, which we ended up taking it seriously nevertheless. We Małgorzata Szumowska & with well-received ›The Other Lamb‹. Was it changing to Ireland, where we shot the wanted to give the film a certain lightness, Michał Englert good to take a break from the film. Catherine S. McMullen, the writer, although It seems that during this peculiar ›Polishness‹ you usually portray in your was open to making changes, but they time, marked by the pandemic, people are films? were also influenced by our American looking for serious messages. producer, who had certain expectations Małgorzata Szumowska: It was so good about the film. With 'Never Gonna Snow M.E: You can see a certain continuity and that we're planning another break quite Again', we were able to enjoy full artistic consistency in the film, an attempt to hand, are trying to be free, to approach soon (laughter). It was an interesting freedom once again. develop the cinematic language that our work intuitively, which means we are experience, for various reasons. It's no interests us most, which is quite contrary. less calculating. Our artistic awareness secret that an English-language debut Is 'Never Gonna Snow Again' going to be It reflects our way of looking at life, which grows constantly with each film we make. opens a lot of doors. Many directors wait another film like 'Body' (2015) and 'Mug' is full of paradoxes and tragicomic We hope we are still able to be genuine; years for it to happen, so we were lucky to (2017), which take a look at Poles as a situations. To some, this type of narrative the films we make together are certainly have made it. Unlike Michał, I had never nation to see whether we are able to treat may diverge from the accepted canon, very honest on our part. worked on someone else's script before. ourselves a bit less seriously or even but we wanted the emotional amplitude We had a lot of fun looking for the right laugh at ourselves? of the film to be quite broad. Today, many form for the story. Also, after making 'The productions, especially mainstream ones, Other Lamb' I felt we both want to make a M.S. I think it's more like 'Body' than 'Mug'. are carefully and superficially balanced. film like 'Never Gonna Snow Again'. By juxtaposing kitschy references to Having a bit of everything is supposed to Kieślowski with bits of irony and make a film sell well. We, on the other tongue-in-cheek, we were able to After the Berlin premiere of 'Body', you prolong one's life in good physical or interview mentioned that your idea was to make a material condition. We live in times when Małgorzata Szumowska & with Michał Englert film about the relationship between a people are constantly trying to measure, person and their body, which turns into label, weigh and plan everything, the relationship with one's soul. I think attempting to create a formula for the this is also a good description of your perfect life. Exclusive gated communities, This reveals a certain spiritual void, which new film.