Jerzy Kawalerowicz

Jerzy Kawalerowicz (January 19, 1922 – December 27, 2007) was a Polish film director. He is of Armenian and Ukrainian jews descent.

Born in Gwoździec, Poland, Jerzy Kawalerowicz was noted for his powerful, detail-oriented imagery and the depth of ideas in his films. After working as an assistant director, he made his directorial debut with the 1951 film The Village Mill (Gromada). He was a leading figure in the Polish Film School, and his films Shadow (Cień, 1956) and Night Train (Pociąg, 1959) constitute some of that movement’s best work.

Other noted works by Kawalerowicz include Mother Joan of the Angels (Matka Joanna od aniolów, 1961) and a 1966 adaptation of Bolesław Prus’ historical novel, Pharaoh, which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

In 1955 Kawalerowicz was appointed head of the prestigious KADR production unit. He held that position again in 1972. He always resisted pressures from the communist administration to produce propaganda films. His studio produced some of the best Polish movies by Andrzej Wajda, Tadeusz Konwicki and Juliusz Machulski. In 1976, he was the head of the jury at the 26th Berlin International Film Festival. Two years later, his film Death of a President won the Silver Bear for an outstanding artistic contribution at the 1978 festival.

In 1983 he alienated some of his peers by signing communist government reports criticizing filmmakers aligned with Solidarity. He died on December 27, 2007 in Warsaw, Poland. His film,_ Quo Vadis_, had the largest budget for a Polish movie. —Wikipedia