KADR (since 1989 Studio Filmowe Kadr) is a major Polish film production and distribution company, founded in 1955 and still producing films as of 2016. Between its founding and 2003, KADR released 150 films in total, including many classics of

Polish cinema The history of cinema in Poland is almost as long as the history of cinematography, and it has universally recognized achievements, even though Polish films tend to be less commercially available than films from several other European nations. Af ...

History

"Arguably the most important Polish film studio," Kadr was founded on May 1, 1955, by filmmaker

Jerzy Kawalerowicz Jerzy Franciszek Kawalerowicz (19 January 1922 – 27 December 2007) was a Polish film director and politician, having been a member of Polish United Workers' Party from 1954 until its dissolution in 1990 and a deputy in Polish parliament since ...

, and its initial output is closely associated with him. Along with Krzysztof Teodor Toeplitz and

Tadeusz Konwicki Tadeusz Konwicki (22 June 1926 – 7 January 2015) was a Polish writer and film director, as well as a member of the Polish Language Council. Life Konwicki was born in 1926 as the only son of Jadwiga Kieżun and Michał Konwicki in Nowa Wilejka, ...

, Kawalerowicz was a primary influence on the development of the

Polish Film School Polish Film School ( pl, Polska Szkoła Filmowa) refers to an informal group of Polish film directors and screenplay writers active between 1956 and approximately 1963. Among the most prominent representatives of the school are Andrzej Wajda, And ...

in the 1950s. With a few exceptions, its landmark films were produced at Kadr. The organization began as one of a few "film units" (''zespoły filmowe'') set up as state enterprises, and with close connections to the establishment

National Film School in Łódź National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

. By 1968 Kadr was a major studio, producing perhaps four titles annually, including the big-budget three-year period production of ''

Pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: '' pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until th ...

'', nominated for an

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

in 1967. The studio was closed in the political turmoil of March 1968, and re-established three years later on January 1, 1972. Kawalerowicz continued as artistic director from the founding until his death in 2007.

Films

Following is a partial list of films released by Kadr: * ''Pokolenie'' (''

A Generation ''A Generation'' ( pl, Pokolenie) is a 1955 Polish film directed by Andrzej Wajda. It is based on the novel ''Pokolenie'' by Bohdan Czeszko, who also wrote the script. It was Wajda's first film and the opening installment of what became his Thr ...

''), directed by

Andrzej Wajda Andrzej Witold Wajda (; 6 March 1926 – 9 October 2016) was a Polish film and theatre director. Recipient of an Honorary Oscar, the Palme d'Or, as well as Honorary Golden Lion and Honorary Golden Bear Awards, he was a prominent member of the ...

, 1955 * ''Cień'' (''

Shadow A shadow is a dark area where light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object. It occupies all of the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two- dimensional silhouett ...

''), directed by Kawalerowicz, 1956 * ''Człowiek na torze'' ('' Man on the Tracks''), directed by

Andrzej Munk Andrzej Munk (16 October 1921 – 20 September 1961) was a Polish film director, screen writer and documentalist. He was one of the most influential artists of the post-Stalinist period in the People's Republic of Poland. His feature films '' M ...

, 1956 * ''

Kanał ''Kanał'' (, ''Sewer'') is a 1957 Polish film directed by Andrzej Wajda. It was the first film made about the 1944 Warsaw Uprising, telling the story of a company of Home Army resistance fighters escaping the Nazi onslaught through the city's ...

'' (''Canal''), directed by Andrzej Wajda, 1956 * ''Deszczowy lipiec'' (''Rainy July''), directed by

Leonard Buczkowski Leonard Buczkowski (5 August 1900 – 19 February 1967) was a Polish film director and screenwriter. He directed 23 films between 1928 and 1966. His 1959 film '' The Eagle'' was entered into the 1st Moscow International Film Festival. Sele ...

, 1958 * '' Eroica'', directed by Munk, 1958 * ''Krzyż walecznych'' (''Cross of Valor''), directed by

Kazimierz Kutz Kazimierz Julian Kutz (16 February 1929 – 18 December 2018) was a Polish film director, author, journalist and politician, one of the representatives of the Polish Film School and a deputy speaker of the Senate of Poland. Biography Kazimierz ...

, 1958 * ''Ostatni dzień lata'' ('' The Last Day of Summer''), directed by

, 1958 * ''Popiół i diament'' ('' Ashes and Diamonds''), directed by Wajda, 1958 * ''

Lotna ''Lotna'' is a 1959 Polish war film directed by Andrzej Wajda. Overview This highly symbolic film is both the director's tribute to the long and glorious history of the Polish cavalry, as well as a more ambiguous portrait of the passing of an era ...

'', directed by Wajda, 1959 * ''Orzeł'' ('' The Eagle''), directed by Buczkowski, 1959 * ''Pociąg'' ('' Night Train''), directed by Kawalerowicz, 1959 * ''Nikt nie woła'', directed by Kutz, 1960 * ''Do widzenia, do jutra...'' (''Goodbye Until Morning''), directed by

Janusz Morgenstern Janusz "Kuba" Morgenstern (16 November 1922 – 6 September 2011) was a Polish film director and producer. Janusz Morgenstern was born in 1922 to a Jewish family in the town of Mikulińce, Poland (now Mykulyntsi, Ukraine), to Dawid Morgenstern ...

, 1960 * ''Niewinni czarodzieje'' (''

Innocent Sorcerers ''Innocent Sorcerers'' ( pl, Niewinni czarodzieje) is a 1960 Polish psychological romantic drama film directed by Andrzej Wajda, and starring Tadeusz Łomnicki and Krystyna Stypułkowska. Its plot follows a young doctor and jazz drummer meeting ...

''), directed by Wajda, 1960 * ''Czas przeszly'' (''Time Past''), directed by Buczkowski, 1961 * ''Matka Joanna od Aniołów'' (''

Mother Joan of the Angels ''Mother Joan of the Angels'' ( pl, Matka Joanna od Aniołów, also known as ''The Devil and the Nun'') is a 1961 Polish art film on demonic possession, directed by Jerzy Kawalerowicz, based on a novella of the same title by Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz ...

''), directed by Kawalerowicz, 1961 * ''

Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...

'', directed by Wajda, 1961 * ''Zaduszki'' (''

All Souls' Day All Souls' Day, also called ''The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed'', is a day of prayer and remembrance for the faithful departed, observed by certain Christian denominations on 2 November. Through prayer, intercessions, alms and ...

''), directed by Konwicki, 1962 * ''Faraon'' (''

''), directed by Kawalerowicz, 1965 * '' Salto'', directed by Konwicki, 1965 * ''

Marysia i Napoleon ''Marysia i Napoleon'' (Mary and Napoleon) is a Polish historical film. It was released in 1966. The film is set in two time periods: modern and historical. Plot A young French historian, Napoleon Beranger, comes to Warsaw on a foreign scholarshi ...

'' (''Mary and Napoleon''), directed by Buczkowski, 1966 * ''

Gniazdo ''Gniazdo'' (English: ''The Nest'') is a 1974 Polish historical film about Mieszko I, the founder of the first independent Polish state, circa 960 AD. The film was written by Aleksander Ścibor-Rylski and directed by Jan Rybkowski. Cast and ch ...

'' (''The Cradle''), directed by

Jan Rybkowski Jan Izydor Rybkowski (4 April 1912 – 29 December 1987) was a Polish film director. He directed 30 films between 1949 and 1984. His 1961 film '' Tonight a City Will Die'' was entered into the 2nd Moscow International Film Festival. Two yea ...

, 1974 * ''Noce i dnie'' ('' Nights and Days''), directed by Jerzy Antczak, 1975 (nominated for

) * ''Śmierć prezydenta'' ('' Death of a President''), directed by Kawalerowicz, 1977 * '' Vabank'', directed by

Juliusz Machulski Juliusz Machulski (born 10 March 1955 in Olsztyn) is a Poles, Polish film director and screenplay writer. Son of noted actor Jan Machulski, Juliusz became notable for his comedies ridiculing the life in communist-ruled Poland of the 1970s and 198 ...

, 1981 * ''Seksmisja'' ('' Sexmission''), directed by Malchulski, 1983 * ''

Kingsajz ''Kingsajz'' is a 1988 cult Polish comedy fantasy film directed by Juliusz Machulski. The action takes place in late communist Poland and in a fictional Lilliputian kingdom called Szuflandia (Drawerland), hidden deep underground the Quaterna ...

'', directed by Malchulski, 1987 * '' Quo Vadis'', directed by Kawalerowicz, 2001 * ''Rewers'' ('' Reverse''), directed by

Borys Lankosz Borys Lankosz (born 31 March 1973, Kraków) is a Polish film director. He graduated from the National Film School in Łódź. His debut film "Evolution" (2001) received several awards, i.a. the Golden Gate Award at the San Francisco Internationa ...

, 2009 * ''Sala Samobójców'' (''

Suicide Room ''Suicide Room'' ( pl, Sala Samobójców) is a 2011 Polish drama thriller film written and directed by Jan Komasa, and starring Jakub Gierszał as a popular high school student whose life quickly deteriorates into ostracisation and depression. ...

''), directed by Jan Komasa, 2011 *'' Piłsudski, directed by Michał Rosa, 2019

References

External links

Classic Polish Films on YouTube
{{Authority control Organizations established in 1955 1955 establishments in Poland Film distributors of Poland Film production companies of Poland