The first CAMERIMAGE Festival was held from November 22nd to 28th 1993. With very little money at their disposal and practically no outside support, a small group of movie enthusiasts set out to bring their idea to life. They realized that, after all, everything depended on a right move and decided to approach two giants of cinematography, Sven Nykvist and Vittorio Storaro. There was no doubt that the inaugural festival should be devoted to the greatest artist ever to look at the world through the camera lens, Sven Nykvist. He was, in fact, the embodiment of the very idea behind the CAMERIMAGE Festival. A longtime partner of Ingmar Bergman and a cinematography legend on both sides of the ocean, Sven Nykvist is a recipient of two Oscars (for Cries and Whispers and Fanny and Alexander - they are also his favorite films), and author of photography in such masterpieces as The Serpent's Egg by Ingmar Bergman, Cannery Row by David Ward, Offret by Andre Tarkowski, Another Woman by Woody Allen, and Chaplin by Sir Richard Attenborough. As soon as Sven Nykvist agreed to participate in the Festival, CAMERIMAGE was officially launched, and took place between November 27th and December 4th. As planned, Sven Nykvist was honored with the first Golden Frog Award for Lifetime Achievement in history of cinema, and the rest - as the saying goes - is the stuff of history!
The concept behind the Festival proved attractive to many cinematographers, including not only Sven Nykvist and Vittorio Storaro, but also to many representatives of the largest associations of cinematographers. The Festival audience was treated to forty-two films from all over the world. Eleven films were selected by critics and members of largest professional organizations from Europe and the United States for artistic quality of the photography, and presented in the Main Competition of the Festival. Members of the Jury, including Vittorio Storaro (President, A.S.C. and A.I.C), Victor Kemper (A.S.C.), Ryszard Horowitz, Sławomir Idziak, Jerzy Płażewski, Witold Sobociński, and Janusz Zaorski faced a very difficult task in awarding the Golden Frog, a Grand Prix of the Festival. After due deliberations, it was given to Stuart Dryburgh for Piano, whilst the Silver Frog was awarded to Gu Changwei for Farewell, My Concubine. The closing ceremony also featured a concert of film music by Wojciech Kilar and was broadcast by Polish Public Television, Telewizja Polska, S.A.
The organizers received an enthusiastic response both from the participants and the public. Numerous messages of congratulations and encouragement from several international cinematographers' associations and other guests were received during the Festival and after its conclusion. Vittorio Storaro gave an opinion on CAMERIMAGE '93 as a milestone in the history of the art of cinematography. Luciano Tivoli, President of Italian Association of Cinematographers and President of European Society of Cinematographers called CAMERIMAGE '93 one of the most important film events of 1993. Victor Kemper, President of American Society of Cinematographers opined that CAMERIMAGE should become the most important festival for cinemato- graphers. For some twenty thousand movie buffs who attended the CAMERIMAGE Festival, it was certainly a very auspicious beginning indeed.
The Second Annual CAMERIMAGE Festival was held from November 26th to December 3rd 1994. Once again, the city of Toruń hosted over seventy distinguished filmmakers from all over the world. There were many Oscar winners among them, directors, producers, actors and well-known celebrities such as Adam Holender, Tibor Mathe, Piotr Sobociński, Vittorio Storaro, and Vilmos Zsigmond. Vilmos Zsigmond was the Festival Jury Chairman and was accompanied by fellow jurors John Bailey, Stuart Dryburgh, Adam Holender, Alan Starski and Jerzy Wójcik. One of the most distinguished guests of the Festival was Arthur Hiller, the legendary American director and author of Love Story, now President of the American Film Academy. It was he who opened the CAMERIMAGE '94 Festival, and introduced a black-and-white film to the audience, White Shadows in Southern Seas. This once famous and nowadays entirely forgotten masterpiece was made in 1929, earning an Oscar for the cinematographer, Clyde de Vinna for the second time in history. Arthur Hiller also received a Special Medal for Immense Contribution to the development of CAMERIMAGE Festival. Witold Sobociński and Vittorio Storaro were awarded the Golden Frog Award for Lifetime Achievement. Among the many films presented in the Main Competition, the Golden Frog Award went to Tibor Mathe for Woyzeck, and Arthur Reinhart for Crows. The Silver Frog Award was given to Piotr Sobociński for Red, and the Bronze Frog Award to Conrad Hall for Searching for Bobby Fisher. A Special Festival Award was given posthumously to Fernando Scarfiotti, who was production designer for most of Bernardo Bertolucci's films.
Many special events were staged in connection with CAMERIMAGE '94 Festival. Chief among them was an exhibitions of photographic works by one of the most famous photographers in the world, Ryszard Horowitz. Although Mr Horowitz is a Pole living in the United States, this was the first time his work was shown in Poland. The occasion had contributed to the Festival's prestige and to its special atmosphere.
As Marek Żydowicz - the founder and President of the Festival - aptly put it, after two successful festivals, organizing the Third Annual CAMERIMAGE was no longer going to be like "staging an opera in the middle of a desert." The Festival was now well known and highly regarded in many countries, and it had successfully forged a new path in the world of film and cinematography. Cinematographers - the forgotten heroes of many a film - finally began to be noticed, appreciated and understood. Although CAMERIMAGE '95 attracted a more modest financial sponsorship, everything went exceedingly well and the overall atmosphere was even more inspiring and friendly than that of the past two Festivals. CAMERIMAGE '95 was held from December 2nd through the 9th and coincided with worldwide celebrations marking centenary of filmmaking. Sixty-two films were presented and twenty-two were selected for the competition.
Conrad Hall, one of the preeminent cinematographers of the world, famous for such exceptional pictures as The Day of the Locust, The Marathon Man and Searching for Bobby Fisher, was the laureate of Lifetime Achievement Award. His enthusiasm for and the esteem of the Festival and its goals were truly exceptional. It was Conrad Hall who provided CAMERIMAGE with film materials from his own private archives. His willingness to lend a hand in all matters, too numerous to mention, also deserves admiration and praise, since it was a milestone in the development of the Festival as a lasting international landmark. Conrad Hall broadened the scope of the Festival by suggesting that in addition to honoring cinematographers, CAMERIMAGE should also recognize directors with an Award for Special Visual Sensitivity and create a special award for the outstanding cooperation between the director and cinematographer.
As usual, all entries submitted to the CAMERIMAGE '95 Festival Main Competition represented the highest artistic achievement in the world of contemporary cinema. Another branch of the Festival, The World Panorama Review was created to screen selected films which did not make the final round and weren't accepted in the Main Competition. The Festival made the world of filmmakers and distributors aware of how effective a tool of promotion this annual filmfest had really become. As a result, a wealth of excellent material began to be submitted to the organizing committee. Among the masterpieces presented at the '95 Festival were such tour de force entries as The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain, La Haine, The Shawshank Redemption, and Legends of the Fall. The Festival Jury was chaired by Conrad Hall and also included Bob Fisher, Walter Lassally, Witold Sobociński, Jaromir Sofr, Ronnie Taylor, Jost Vacano and Jerzy Wójcik.
The Jury presented its Grand Prix, The Golden Frog Award, to Piotr Sobociński for The Seventh Room, whilst the Silver Frog was awarded to Goert Giltay for The Flying Dutchman, and the Bronze Frog was given to Roger Deakins for The Shawshank Redemption. Additionally, The Flying Dutchman was recognized with several Special Awards, given to Gert Brinkers for art direction, to Anne Verhoeven for costume design, and to Luk Van Cleemput for make-up artistry.
One of the most interesting and original aspects of CAMERIMAGE '95 was its closing ceremony, held in the Willam Horzyca Theatre. It featured presentation of The Film, a play directed by Andrzej Strzelecki and performed by the theatrical group "Rampa". During the awards ceremony the prizes were handed to cinematographers by famous Polish directors, including Krzysztof Kieślowski (who gave the Lifetime Achievement Award to Conrad Hall), as well as Robert Gliński, Juliusz Machulski, Władyslaw Pasikowski and Radosław Piwowarski. With this gesture, the directors expressed their sincere appreciation of their colleagues' work behind the camera lens.
The establishing of CAMERIMAGE Film School was one of many additional initiatives undertaken following the '95 Festival. Operating under the auspices of CAMERIMAGE, the school will teach young people the art of filmmaking according to the ideas and principles espoused by the Festival. CAMERIMAGE Film School will have three main departments: Screenwriting, Acting, and Film and TV Direction and its teaching staff will include professors from the world-famous National Film School in Łódź, which has produced several generations of renowned directors and cinematographers.
The Fourth International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography was held from November 30th to December 7th 1996. The Lifetime Achievement Award was given to Haskell Wexler, perhaps the greatest American cinematographer and highly regarded director, who joined the exclusive club of three distinguished laureates from previous years, Sven Nykvist, Vittorio Storaro and Conrad Hall.
The Jury of the 1996 Festival was chaired by Andrzej Żuławski, and also included Robert Alazraki, Andrzej J. Jaroszewicz, Miroslav Ondricek, Alexey Rodionov, Haskell Wexler and Vilmos Zsigmond. A new Festival tradition of selecting famous Polish director for the following year's Chair of Main Competition Jury was adopted. Thus, Agnieszka Holland was chosen to head the Jury of the 1997 Festival.
Taxi by Carlos Saura, Richard III by Richard Loncraine, Kolia by Jan Sverak (a beautiful Czech production, eventually honored with an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film), Shine by Scott Hicks, The Pillow Book by Peter Greenaway, and Stealing Beauty by Bernardo Bertolucci were among several superb entries presented at the CAMERIMAGE '96 Festival. Overall, nineteen films participated in the Main Competition and about thirty were presented in the World Panorama.
The Grand Prix - the Golden Frog - was given to Dick Pope for Secrets and Lies, the Silver Frog was awarded to Eduardo Serra for Jude, and Bronze Frog to Geoffrey Simpsons for Shine.
Two entirely new ideas were added to the artistic program of the Festival. One of them was the introduction of cinematography workshops, conducted by the most famous guests of the Festival. The other was creation of a new award, recognizing film direction with special visual sensitivity. The cinematography workshops aroused enormous interest and took place in the Main Hall of the recently restored and converted Protestant church, where the Tumult Foundation - CAMERIMAGE organizer - has its offices.
Additionally, several special seminars on film and film equipment were held. Two of them were given by the legendary English cinematographer Walter Lassally, the director of photography for such classics as Every Day Except Christmas, A Taste of Honey, The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, Tom Jones, The Private History of a Campaign that Failed, and the Oscar-winning Zorba the Greek. Another seminar was given by Robbie Müller, the cinematographer of one of the most controversial, widely recognized and appreciated films of recent years, Breaking the Waves.
The very first recipient of the Award for Direction with Special Visual Sensitivity was John Schlesinger, recognized for his cinematographic achievements in some of the most penetrating and moving films in the history of cinema - The Midnight Cowboy, The Day of the Locust, and The Marathon Man, to name but a few of the outstanding examples. (Conrad Hall, who collaborated with John Schlesinger on The Day of the Locust and The Marathon Man was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award during the 1995 CAMERIMAGE Festival).
From its early days onwards, one of the main goals of the CAMERIMAGE organizers was to build a widespread following among the general public. Unprecedented efforts were made for each CAMERIMAGE Festival in order to present extensive offering of accompanying events, such as workshops, seminars and art exhibitions. Special opening and closing ceremonies were also added for the 1996 Festival. Official speeches by the Festival Director and a representative of SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS - one of the corporate sponsors - were followed by the Buffo Theatre's special show, based on film techniques and cinematographic effects. This presentation was directed by Janusz Józefowicz and organized with help from J. Walter Thompson's PARINTEX and STUDIO ONE from Warsaw. In addition, the Art Group Theatre based at the Catholic University of Lublin mounted a performance entitled The Slot during the Festival. It was directed by Leszek Mądzik, one of the most interesting personalities of Polish modern theatre. The Festival organizers also prepared two photo exhibitions - The Voyage into Other Worlds by Grzegorz Torzecki and Impressions of Stockholm by Krystyna Zachwatowicz, the world-famous film art designer and wife of the renowned director Andrzej Wajda.
Over forty thousand moviegoers attended the 1996 CAMERIMAGE Festival. Since the main screening room had a capacity of one thousand seats per show, the Festival Office was besieged by the public trying to beat the odds of receiving an admission ticket and had to halt ticket sales one week before the Festival had begun.
As usual, the Festival owed its resounding success to the support and generosity of numerous sponsors. Among these were the National Polish Film Committee and its President, Tadeusz Scibór-Rylski; Municipal Authorities of the city of Toruń; SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS/POLAND - the main sponsor of all CAMERIMAGE Festivals from the beginning, and KODAK PROFESSIONAL MOTION PICTURE IMAGING - the main branch sponsor of the Festival. Other official Festival sponsors included ARRI, DHL, PANTHER, INTERNATIONAL, TELEKOMUNIKACJA POLSKA, S.A., DEDO WEIGERT GMBH and ALUMIL POLAND - the main local sponsor. AMERICAN AIRLINES and BRITISH AIRWAYS took care of Festival guests traveling by air. POLISH EXPRESS was responsible for passenger transport between Warsaw and Toruń. POLISH PUBLIC TELEVISION PROGRAM I and the satellite radio RMF-FM aired extensive reports covering all Festival events. Advertisements for sponsors such as LEVI'S, DHL, UNITED DISTILLERIES and RMF-FM were presented before all film screenings.
The CAMERIMAGE '96 was widely covered by all kinds of national media, among them the newspapers Rzeczpospolita, Gazeta Wyborcza and Życie Warszawy, radio stations RMF-FM, RADIO ZET, POLISH PUBLIC RADIO PROGRAMS I, II and III and POLISH RADIO BIS. Television coverage included extensive reports in POLISH PUBLIC TELEVISION and its local affiliates in Bydgoszcz, Gdańsk, Lublin, Katowice and Wrocław.
The Fifth Annual Festival dedicated to the art of cinematography was held between November 29th and December 6th 1997 and, since it marked the first jubilee gathering, enormous amounts of energy and effort were expanded on organizing and running the event. A truly impressive program of workshops was set up by Festival organizers. These were conducted by the best cinematographers in the world and coordinated by Vilmos Zsigmond - a laureate of the CAMERIMAGE Lifetime Achievement Award. Many famous movie stars were also present, with Jeremy Irons and Sophie Marceau topping the list of celebrity guests. There was a special competition for student films and a retrospective presentation featuring work of Vilmos Zsigmond, the latter being represented by his 1997 hit and Oscar-winning picture Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Lord Richard Attenborough, Bernardo Bertolucci, Steven Spielberg, and Oliver Stone were nominated for the Award for Directing with Special Visual Sensitivity, whilst the teams of Ingmar Bergman and Sven Nykvist, Clint Eastwood and Jack Green, and Bernardo Bertolucci and Vittorio Storaro were nominated for the Director--Cinematographer Duo Award. A special series of seminars on different aspects of cinematography and filmmaking were also held during the CAMERIMAGE '97 Festival.
The Lifetime Achievement Award was given this time to Vilmos Zsigmond. In addition, the Festival organizers published a commemorative, richly illustrated volume about Vilmos' life and career. The 1997 Award for Direction with Special Visual Sensitivity went to Bernardo Bertolucci, for films like The Conformist, Little Buddha, Stealing Beauty, The Last Emperor, The Last Tango in Paris and The Sheltering Sky.
The first-ever award for Director - Cinematographer Duo was given to Bernardo Bertolucci and Vittorio Storaro, honoring their joint effort in such films as A Spider's Stratagem, Little Buddha, The Conformist, The Last Emperor, The Last Tango in Paris, The Moon, The Twentieth Century and The Sheltering Sky. Vittorio Storaro arrived in Toruń to receive the joint award and to present the reissued version of the first film he had made with Bertolucci - A Spider's Stratagem. He also gave a special seminar on film preservation.
The Golden Frog Award for Special Achievements in the field of Cinematographic Techniques went to Bobby Arnold, President of ARRI. He received his award in person and, as one of the most distinguished guests of the CAMERIMAGE Festival, he was also honored with a special dinner and tribute from the cinematographers and filmmakers gathered for the occasion.
Besides the many cinematographers gathered for CAMERIMAGE'97, the Festival was attended by some of the greatest movie stars, with Jeremy Irons, Krystyna Janda, Sophie Marceau, Ahn Sung Kyi and Beata Poźniak, among others.
An exhibition of paintings by Jerzy Mierzejewski, a long-time Dean of the Department of Cinematography at the National Film School in Łódź and one of the greatest modern Polish painters, was also staged to accompany the Festival. It was Krzysztof Zanussi's idea to display artwork of his former teacher in the Great Hall of the Tumult Foundation, headquarters of the CAMERIMAGE Festival.
A new competition for student films was launched during the CAMERIMAGE '97 Festival. The submissions were screened by the same jury, and prizes of Golden, Silver and Bronze Tadpole were awarded. The aim of this competition was to give the young filmmakers from all over the world a chance to present their work for review by their older peers, and to help young talent take the first step in the world of film. Over seventy schools sent their entries, and thirty-three short films from fifteen countries were selected for the competition. About sixty students from sixteen countries, including Australia, England, France, Germany, Hungary, Ukraine, United States, and Russia came to Toruń. The European Center of Youth Cooperation coordinated the so-called "home stay" program, arranging accommodation for all foreign students in the homes of Polish families in Toruń.
The Student Competition winner and the recipient of the Golden Tadpole was Marek Wieser, representing Polish Film School in Łódź with his entry Liver and Potatoes. The Silver Tadpole was given to Marek Gajczak (also from the Łódź Film School) for A Way for Moravia. The Bronze Tadpole went to Manuel Mack, representing Deutsche Film und Fernsehen Akademie in Berlin with his film A Summer's Day.
Many students have also participated in special workshops, organized by the Festival Committee and coordinated by Vilmos Zsigmond. The topics were centered on theory and practice, and classes were supplemented by practical exercises on the set. Jack Green, Victor Kemper, Walter Lassally, Piotr Sobociński, Mike Southon, Vittorio Storaro, Dedo Weigert, Zbigniew Rybczyński and other famous cinematographers also participated in these workshops.
The latest cinematographic gear was presented by the best cinematographic supply companies during the CAMERIMAGE'97 Festival. State-of-the-art equipment provided by vendors and Festival sponsors such as LICHT TECHNIK, PANAVISION and ARRI was displayed in the Grand Hall of the Copernicus University in Toruń. Although for three years running such exhibitions and presentations were received with great enthusiasm, the unanimous opinion of all Festival guests was that the equipment on display during CAMERIMAGE '97 was particularly impressive.
The 1997 Festival was generously supported by many different organizations and companies. Among them were the MINISTRY OF CULTURE (Polish State Film Committee), City of Toruń, POLISH TV, ARRI, PANAVISION, LICHT TECHNIK, SACHTLER, TIFFEN, MOVIECAM, COLOUR BY DE LUXE, DEDO WEIGERT and PANTHER. SAMSUNG CORPORATION was the main festival sponsor, ALUMIL POLAND was the main regional sponsor, and RADIO RFM-FM provided Radio sponsorship and news coverage.
The Fifth Annual CAMERIMAGE Festival was a resounding success. The organizers felt proud of their accomplishments in attracting international interest and sponsorship for this unique Festival. A record crowd of over forty-five thousand participants attended screenings, exhibitions and other related events, confirming the importance of CAMERIMAGE in the world of cinematography and placing the city of Toruń among the elite of cities associated with the world of film.
The Sixth Annual CAMERIMAGE Festival was held from November 28th to December 5th 1998. Besides the Main Competition and the World Panorama event, a new category of Television Presentations was officially introduced. A special symposium on the subject of images in television was held and the subject of future television presentations at the CAMERIMAGE Festival was discussed. The most prominent Polish critics organized a seminar on the subject of "Film Image as Artwork", examining issues relating to evaluating films as literary and visual works of art. As usual, there were numerous press conferences, workshops, seminars, equipment presentations, and other similar events focusing on the role of the cinematographer in film and teaching of the art of cinematography. The Festival organizers also published books on the two distinguished filmmakers, Laszlo Kovacs and Jerzy Skolimowski.
Once again, many of the film's greatest celebrities attended the Festival. Laszlo Kovacs, Gustaf Mandal, Mike Molloy, Robby Müller, Carlos Saura, Jerzy Skolimowski, Piotr Sobociński, Vittorio Storaro, Jeremy Thomas and Krzysztof Zanussi were among the guests. Several prize-winning films - Eternity and a Day by Theo Angelopoulos, Central Station by Walter Salles, Hanna Bi by Takeshi Kitano, Tango by Carlos Saura and Saving Private Ryan by Steven Spielberg - were screened.
The 1998 Festival recognized Laszlo Kovacs with the Lifetime Achievement award for films such as Copycat, Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, Frances, Ghostbusters, Last Waltz, New York, New York, Paper Moon, Radio Flier and Shampoo. Sven Nykvist (in his third guest appearance at the Festival) received an award for Director - Cinematographer Duo of All Times for his collaboration with Ingmar Bergman. Other recipients of the Director - Cinematographer Duo Award were Robby Müller and Jim Jarmush. The award for Direction with Special Visual Sensitivity went to Carlos Saura, one of the most respected Spanish directors, known for films such as Carmen, Flamenco and Taxi. His latest masterpiece, Tango, (photography by Vittorio Storaro), was presented in the CAMERIMAGE Main Competition and not only won the hearts of audiences, but also received a Special Award from the President of the State Institute of Polish Cinematography.
Ever since the inception of the Festival, the cinematographers - its main focus - have stressed the importance of their colleagues and collaborators - directors, actors and others - who contribute to films in memorable and innumerable ways. Gary Oldman, a consummate actor and an accomplished director, was honored by the Festival with a special award in this context.
The Jury of CAMERIMAGE '98 had a wide range of fascinating films to screen, and a large pool of exceptional talent from all over the world to recognize with the awards. The Jury Chair, Jerzy Skolimowski, was assisted by two Polish counterparts, Grzegorz Kędzierski and Maria Kornatowska, as well as by Donald Fredericksen (United States), Jean Michel Hummeau (France), Gustaf Mandal (Sweden), Mike Molloy (United Kingdom), Franz Rath (Germany) and Giuseppe Rotunno (Italy). The Grand Prize of Golden Frog was awarded to Walter Carvalho (Brazil) for his film Central Station. The Silver Frog went to Hideo Yamamoto (Japan) for Hana Bi and the Bronze Frog was given to Jens Fischer (Sweden) for Beneath the Surface.
The 1998 gathering also included Student Film Festival, a feature introduced in 1997. This time, the competition was extended to include both the Main Competition and the World Panorama. One hundred fifty students from abroad and about three hundred from Poland attended the Festival. Thirty-nine short films were screened, eliciting positive response from enthusiastic audiences and Festival's guests. Fascinating entries, like Blanche and Marie, Great Falls, Handle with Care, Pills, Photographer, President Kekkonen, Stories of Tio Paco and Swimming clearly demonstrated that the future cinema lay in good hands. The Golden Tadpole Award was given to Danny Featherstone (Australian Radio, Film and Television School) for his film Great Falls. Mikołaj Łebkowski (Polish National Film School, Łódź) was awarded the Silver Tadpole for A Sphere, and Alexey Todorov (Russian State Institute of Cinematography) received the Bronze Tadpole for A Short Film About a Boy.
Another tradition of workshops and seminars given by the world's greatest cinematographers was duly continued during the 1998 Festival. Recipients of Lifetime Achievement Award had assumed the responsibility for preparing and coordinating these special sessions. Thus, Vilmos Zsigmond's 1997 leadership was taken over in 1998 by Laszlo Kovacs. The seminars were designed for experienced filmmakers who would be willing to spend five intense working days with one of the most respected cinematographers in the world today. Apart from Laszlo Kovacs, such renowned cinemato- graphers as Theo Bierkens, Robby Müller, Marty Ollstein and Arthur Reinhart demonstrated the use of professional equipment, setting up lighting and working with cameras as well as solving various technical set-up problems involved with daytime and night shooting. The daily assignments were recorded with the state-of-the-art Panavision and Arriflex cameras and lenses, using the most current 35mm Kodak film stocks.
Among many Festival-related events, a seminar discussing legal situation of cinematographers in Europe was also held. Aiming at defining and interpreting the regulations protecting cinematographers' copyright in various European countries, this seminar postulated adoption of common legal standards, defined by improved and harmonized European laws. The European Societies of Cinematographers centered around the IMAGO Federation also endorsed the idea of creating a special panel of lawyers at the CAMERIMAGE Festival, and pursing the improvement of legal standards of copyright protection for cinematographers.
The 1998 Festival was widely covered by Polish and foreign media. Among them were POLISH TV CHANNEL 2, local TV stations, HBO, CANAL+ and many radio broadcasters, both public and private. Daily reviews of CAMERIMAGE '98 appeared in Gazeta Wyborcza, the national press patron of the Festival. Other Polish and international magazines (Cinema, Film, Kino, Machina, The Hollywood Reporter, American Cinematographer, International Photographer, Film und TV Kameramann among many others) were also accredited to the Festival.
The Seventh Annual CAMERIMAGE Festival took place from November 27th to December 4th 1999. The Festival patrons were the Ministry Of Culture, Polish Film Committee, the City Council of Toruń and the local district authorities. Once again, CAMERIMAGE attracted numerous prominent filmmakers from all over the world, with John Bailey, Dirk Bruel, Dean Cundey, Roger Deakins, Paweł Edelman, Sławomir Idziak, Mahmoud Kalari, Anthony Dod Mantle, Robby Müller, Dick Pope, Gernot Roll, Giuseppe Rotunno, Timo Salminen, Witold Sobociński, Oliver Stapleton, Billy Williams and Jerzy Zieliński, among the one hundred cinematographers in attendance. Many of the most prominent directors - Agnieszka Holland, Norman Jewison, Rolland Joffe, Emir Kostunica, Mike Leigh, Marta Meszaros, Paul Schrader and Peter Weir - also attended events celebrating the masters of film imagery.
The opening ceremony, held on November 27th was the occasion for Andrzej Jaroszewicz, President of Polish Society of Cinematographers to present CAMERIMAGE President and Founder, Marek Żydowicz, with the Honorary Membership in the Polish Society of Cinematographers in recognition of Marek's continuing support to Polish cinematography. The Festival itself was launched with special screenings of Topsy-Turvy - Mike Leigh's latest film, photographed by Dick Pope, and Tea with Mussolini - Franco Zeffirelli's latest opus, photographed by David Watkin. Honorary Awards were given at the Closing Ceremony that ended with a Polish premiere of A Midsummer Night's Dream (directed by Michel Hoffman and photographed by Oliver Stapleton) and a screening of Federico Fellini'sCasanova, photographed by Giuseppe Rotunno.
The Golden Frog Award for Lifetime Achievement was given to one of the greatest cinematographers in the world, Giuseppe Rotunno. His career began in the studios of Cinecitta and continued with series of spectacular films made with legendary filmmakers like Federico Fellini, Vittorio De Sica and Luchino Visconti in Italy, and Robert Altman, John Huston, Stanley Kramer and Orson Welles in America. With over one hundred films, his repertoire is a monumental cinematic achievement. Giuseppe Rotunno received his Golden Frog from another great director, Emir Kostunica, with whom he is scheduled to collaborate on his next film project. A special retrospective of Giuseppe Rotunno's films was held, enabling the audiences to see several of his movies, like All That Jazz, Adventures of Baron Munchausen, Casanova, The Leopard, Wolf, and The Ship Sails On.
Peter Weir came to the Festival to collect his Special Award for Directing with Visual Sensitivity, given to him in 1995. This Australian director who made Dead Poets' Society, Fearless, Picnic at Hanging Rock, The Truman Show, and The Year of Living Dangerously was very pleased with the recognition accorded to him by the Festival organizers and with the audience, who gave Mr. Weir a standing ovation.
Rolland Joffe was the CAMERIMAGE '99 winner of Special Award for Film Direction with Special Visual Sensitivity. The director of the Goodbye Lover, Killing Fields, The Mission City of Joy and Scarlet Letter emphasized in his remarks that it is possible to make a movie without a director, but quite impossible to do one without a cinematographer.
The Lifetime Achievement Award for Film Direction with Special Visual Sensitivity was given to Norman Jewison. The director who worked with the most notable and brilliant cinematographers of the world on such films as Fiddler on the Roof, In the Heat of the Night, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Moonstruck received his award from Roger Deakins literally on his knees! Later in the evening, the CAMERIMAGE audience had a chance to see a trailer of his latest movie, Hurricane, photographed by Roger Deakins. The CAMERIMAGE Special Award for Director - Cinematographer Duo was given to Mike Leigh and Dick Pope who teamed on such pictures as Life is Sweet, Naked and Secrets and Lies.
The International Jury of the Seventh CAMERIMAGE Festival was chaired by the English director Mike Leigh (Secrets and Lies, Naked, Topsy-Turvy). Other jury members included Dean Cundey, A.S.C. (Jurassic Park, Apollo 13, Death Becomes Her), Theo Bierkens (Bin Ich Schon), Wolfgang Fischer, B.V.K (Wilder Reiter GmbH, Die Grenze, Zwei wie Wir), Tony Forsberg (Faust, Sunday in September), Anne Goursaud, A.C.E. (Dracula, Lost Souls), Oliver Stapleton, B.S.C. (Kansas City, The Cider House Rules, The Midsummer Night's Dream), and Witold Stok (Close My Eyes, Century). The jury evaluated the following visually outstanding films presented at the Main Competition:
The jury presented the Grand Prix Golden Frog Award to Remi Adefarasin for his film Elizabeth. The Silver Frog was awarded to Junichi Fujisawa for Hakuchi: The Innocent and Timo Salminen received a Bronze Frog for his entry Juha.
The Entries for CAMERIMAGE World Panorama Category included the following:
Besides the screenings of Topsy-Turvy and Tea with Mussolini on the opening night, Special Screenings Category presented the following entries:
Wednesday, December 1st 1999 was devoted entirely to screening films submitted to the Student Film Competition. The following international film schools were represented:
The Jury awarded Bogumil Godfrejow (The National Film, Television and Theatre School, Poland) the Golden Tadpole prize for his film Claire. The Silver Tadpole was given to Piotr Szczepański (The National Film, Television and Theatre School, Poland) for his film Q. The Bronze Tadpole was handed to Daniela Knapp and Kathinka Minthe (Filmakedemie Baden-Württemberg, Germany) for their film Counting Sheep.
Participating students also had the opportunity to observe the professionals at work during special TIME-WARNER/HBO workshops and seminars, supported by PANAVISION, ARRI and AVID. This year, the workshops were organized around the idea of having two independent film crews work on two separate short films based on the same script. Each crew consisted of a director, cinematographer and editor. Both crews had the same equipment, used the same locations and, after the shooting, the students had a rare opportunity to observe editing of the materials fist hand. The students could also join in the two teams at work - the first consisting of John Bailey, Carol Littleton and Paul Schrader, the second consisting of Roger Deakins, Martha Meszaros and Katarzyna Rudnik. There were also some fascinating seminars led by Oliver Stapleton (Working with Stephen Frears) and Billy Williams (Women in Love), which drew the attention of numerous film school students and movie aficionados.
Once again, the CAMERIMAGE Festival continued the tradition of being the place of IMAGO General Assembly. Representatives of more than twenty societies of cinematographers met in Toruń on December 2nd, 1999 under the leadership of General Secretary Frederic Kaczek and Gustaf Mandal, President of the Federation. A seminar on the legal situation of cinematographers was also included in the proceedings.
FILMSCAPES - a photograph exhibition by one of the most famous Hollywood photographers, Peter Sorel also took place during the Festival. Photos taken on the set of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Die Hard, Seven, and Lolita were showed to great public acclaim.
The Festival sponsors have contributed strongly to the overall growth and success of CAMERIMAGE. Heinz Kossler from SACHTLER was recognized with an award for Immense Contribution to the Development of Film Technique. BRITISH AIRWAYS were also awarded with CAMERIMAGE Honorary Medal for their contribution and assistance to the Festival.
KODAK PROFESSIONAL IMAGING was the main sponsor of CAMERIMAGE '99. Other official sponsors included the POLISH FILM COMMITTEE, City of Toruń and Toruń District Authorities, WRANGLER, HBO, TIME WARNER, ARRI, PANAVISION, TECHNICOLOR, COLOR BY DELUXE, MAY, SACHTLER, PANTHER, TIFFEN, and SONY CORPORATION among others. All compa- nies made extensive presentations of their equipment, attracting great interest among the students and participants of the Festival.
The media patrons included the newspaper Rzeczpospolita, Polish TV Program 2, Radio RFM-FM, Nowości, Radio Toruń and Radio PiK, as well as the magazines like The Hollywood Reporter, Film, Kino and Cinema, for a far-reaching and thorough coverage of all Festival-related events.
The VIII International Film Festival of the Art of Cinematography, LODZ, Poland took place from December 2nd to 9th with honorary patronage of Aleksander Kwasniewski, the President of Poland.
Festival Centre was settled in the Grand Theatre (1270 seats). Festival Screening were also held in BAŁTYK and POLONIA movie theatres.
Moving of the Festival to Łodź after seven years of its presence in Toruń, received enthusiastic opinions both from the Polish and foreign milieu of filmmakers. They were reflected in numerous statements of the Festival Guests, who emphasised the long-time film tradition of the town.
CAMERIMAGE 2000 was visited by illuminate filmmakers: cinematographers, directors and actors. In the Festival foyer and during the Festival screenings one could meet: David Lynch, the author of TWIN PEAKS and LOST HIGHWAY, Ed Harris, an American actor who presented his directorial debut POLLOCK, Michael Cimino, the acclaimed director of DEER HUNTER, Jeremy Davies, up and coming actor staring in THE MILLION DOLLAR HOTEL and SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, Vittorio Storaro, the legendary cinematographer of Francis Ford Coppola and Bernardo Bertolucci, Janusz Kamiński, two time laureate of the Academy Award for cinematography for SCHINDLER'S LIST and SAVING PRIVATE RYAN by Steven Spielberg among many brilliant Polish filmmakers: Jerzy Skolimowski, Witold Sobociński, Janusz Morgenstern, Janusz Gajos, Bogusław Linda, Dorota Kędzierzawska, Artur Reinhart, Jan Jakub Kolski, Władysław Pasikowski, Paweł Edelman, Mariusz Grzegorzek, Paweł Deląg.
The Opening of the Festival (Dec.2nd) was accompanied by Jerzy Skolimowski's paintings exhibition presented in the foyer of the Grand Theatre. Beside invited filmmakers many politicians, Members of Parliament and businessmen from Łódź took part in the Gala.
During the Opening Ceremony Witold Sobociński, on behalf of himself and Andrzej Wajda received the Golden Frog for Polish director-cinematographer duo. After the official Opening of the Festival by the President of Łódź, Tadeusz Matusiak, the audience saw two films: Polish premiere of SUCKER SEASON by Bogusław Linda and the first competition screening ONEGIN by Martha Fiennes lensed by Remi Adefarasin, the Laureate of the Golden Frog for ELISABETH. Their authors introduced both screenings.
Since Sunday, Dec.3rd the International Jury, including: Michael Cimino - USA (the Head), Peter Suschitzky - UK, Yorgos Arvanitis - France, Mahmoud Kalari - Iran, Wolfgang Treu - Germany, Alex Thomson - UK, Paul Sarossy - Canada, Jacek Petrycki - Poland started to evaluate the cinematography of the visually best productions of the year:
The Jury evaluated also student etudes nominated by 29 film schools from all around the world.
During the Closing Ceremony of the Festival, Dec. 9th, the following awards were granted:
The Closing Ceremony was highlighted by the world premiere of introduced by the film's director, Jonas McCord, THE BODY, cinematography by Vilmos Zsigmond.
All in all, during CAMERIMAGE 2000 there were 50 feature films (20 of them, including LOST SOULS-USA, FELICIA'S JOURNEY-Canada, THE SICILIAN-USA, TASTE OF CHERY-Iran had their Polish premiere at the Festival) and 56 student etudes screened.
The agenda of the Festival included:
CAMERIMAGE 2000 was broadly covered by Polish media and Internet:
The Internet coverage was provided by onet.pl, whose representatives organised Internet chats with the most acclaimed Guests of the Festival.
More than 1200 reps. of the film industry were accredited at the Festival, including cinematographers, directors, distributors, along with 200 journalists and 800 film students from all around the world.
The Festival was sponsored by:
FINANCED BY THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND NATIONAL HERITAGE OF THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND AS PART OF THE TASK: CO-ORGANIZATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL OF THE ART OF CINEMATOGRAPHY EnergaCAMERIMAGE 2024
CO-FINANCED BY: THE CITY OF TORUŃ AND KUJAWSKO-POMORSKIE REGION
