TWO POLISH PROJECTS SELECTED FOR THE JI.HLAVA NEW VISIONS FORUM

Two projects with Polish involvement have been selected for this year’s Ji.hlava New Visions Forum. “Being in You by Michał Stankiewicz and “Words We Never Say” by Agnieszka Zwiefka will be presented during one of the key industry events of the Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival, taking place from October 28 to 30.

The Ji.hlava New Visions Forum is one of the festival’s major industry events, bringing together both emerging and established filmmakers developing bold new documentary projects. This year, 29 projects from 15 countries will be presented, giving their teams an opportunity to connect with potential partners in co-production, financing, sales and distribution.

The first project with Polish involvement is “BEING IN YOU” by Michał Stankiewicz, a mixed-reality documentary created with American singer and geologist Cat Janice, both before her death and through materials and recordings she left behind.

In January 2024, while in hospice care, Cat Janice released the song “Dance You Outta My Head”. She transferred the rights to the track to her young son so that proceeds from its success would go to him. The song later reached number one on the TikTok Billboard Top 50. Janice died on February 28, 2024, at the age of 31.

During the final period of her life, she was also working with Stankiewicz on a project built around her voice, music and presence. “BEING IN YOU” reverses the conventional logic of immersive experiences. Rather than asking the viewer to enter Cat’s world, the project asks whether she can enter theirs, through their senses, imagination and even bodily movement. The result is an intimate encounter between a living person and the digital trace of someone who has passed away, as well as a reflection on memory, presence and the ways in which technology may allow that presence to endure.

The project is currently having its world premiere in the Venice Immersive Competition at the Venice International Film Festival. It is the first Polish production ever selected for competition in the festival’s XR strand and the first Polish immersive documentary presented in the main Venice Immersive competition. “BEING IN YOU” is co-financed by the Polish Film Institute.

The second selected project is “Words We Never Say” by Agnieszka Zwiefka, a co-production between Poland, Bulgaria, Germany and Spain. Zwiefka directs the film and also serves as a producer alongside Izabela Igel.

At the centre of the story are a mother and daughter who find themselves on opposite sides of a growing political divide. Against the backdrop of the rise of the far right, they embark on a journey through Poland, Europe and the United States. At the same time, within the controlled space of a film studio, they revisit and restage past disagreements that have shaped their relationship over the years.

Their deeply personal family conflict becomes a starting point for a broader reflection on political polarisation, the way ideological divisions affect intimate relationships, and the possibility of dialogue despite fundamental differences.