ABOUT THE FILM

We wanted to tell the story of Poland’s history—a history that is complicated and yet unknown—in an exciting way.

It took two years.

The starting point for Fishladder Studio and the Institute of National Remembrance was to find the common denominator of Poles’ attitudes during the war.

And it turned out to be: resistence.

Poles didn’t make concessions. Every action by the aggressors was met with a decisive reaction. Determination, versatility, and ingenuity were key qualities of Poland’s fight with Germany and Soviet Russia.

In this film, we show 24 key moments in “Poland’s battle for freedom”.

Each of the characters presented in this film—whether they are soldiers, underground activists, or nurses— are both historic and symbolic. They are based on real heros, such as Irena Sendler or Witold Pilecki. Some of these figures appear on screen for the first time, such as General Stanisław Maczek, Jan Karski in conversation with Roosevelt, or Marian Rejewski.

This film would not be possible without the invaluable consultancy of historians, who tediously checked the outfits, weaponry, and every scene’s historical elements.

At the same time, we were searching for a visual style for our project. Michał Misiński from Juice Studio ended up creating the final visual product, which has a painting’s aesthetic to it, giving the story a poetic and mythical dimension. Furthermore, this style lends itself well to building meaningful symbolism, such as that of the first scene, for example—when the main character is being crushed between two walls, or such as in the scene where Karski meets with Roosevelt.

Another key element in constructing the mood of the film—and harnessing its emotional power—is the music. This was created by Tommy Zee and Juice Studio, including narrators Sean Bean for the English version, and Mirosław Zbrojewicz for the Polish version.