Spotlight on Andrzej Zulawski at the Walter Reade Theatre in New York

The Film Society of Lincoln Center in partnership with the Polish Cultural Institute New York, with additional support from the Polish Film Institute is proud to present U.S. premiere of legendary maverick director Andrzej Zulawski's latest feature, Cosmos, plus a selection of new digital restorations of his landmark Polish films, including his debut, The Third Part of the Night, and his towering film maudit On the Silver Globe. Andrzej Korzynski, creator of the music for Zulawski's movies, father of Polish pop music, who's more experimental works are often compared to Enio Morricone, will be introducing each film and will be available for Q&A after screening of Cosmos.

Andrzej Zulawski - director, screenwriter, novelist, essayist and actor - has created a body of work unlike any other. His debut feature The Third Part of the Night in 1971 defined his exuberant style, which has developed over the course of his career in Poland and France.

Zulawski's cinema is like an expressive dance with non-linear storytelling, elements of surrealism, where the extravagance of form serves as a metaphor for the conflicting forces within the human soul and a desperate search for the truth, beauty, the Absolute and salvation. Loved by many, hated by some, he remains one of Poland's - and Europe's - most radical and appreciated filmmakers.

He began his career as an assistant director to Andrzej Wajda (Samson, 1961; Ashes, 1965). After The Third Part of the Night he made The Devil (1972) - banned by the Communist authorities. Following the success of That Most Important Thing: Love in France, he was allowed to return to Poland to make a science fiction epic, On the Silver Globe (1976/1988), an allegory of totalitarianism that was yet again banned by the authorities and forced Zulawski to leave Poland for France to continue working. Possession and La Femme Publique (1984) with Valerie Kaprisky, are two of the "wild, imaginative, and controversial pictures" (Yuri German, All Movie Guide) that gained Zulawski his reputation as a non-conformist visionary.

Andrzej Korzynski is a Polish composer, arranger, organist and pianist whose unique experiments with jazz, pop, rock, orchestral and electronic music have led to him being one of the most prolific songwriters and soundtrack composers in the history of Polish cinema and radio. His first soundtrack composition was for Andrzej Wajda's 1968 film Everything for Sale. He would work with Wajda on six more films. His creative partnership with Polish filmmaker Andrzej Zulawski is probably the most enduring and fertile chapter in Korzynski's career. The pair worked together on many of the Zulawski's films e.g.: The Third Part of the Night, The Devil, The Important Thing Is to Love, On the Silver Globe, Possession and Cosmos. Throughout the 90s and 2000s, the Polish composer continued to work on various TV and film projects.

Restorations courtesy of the Polish Film Institute. Spotlight on Andrzej Zulawski organized by Florence Almozini.

Friday, February 19, 2016 - Saturday, February 20, 2016
Walter Reade Theatre
165 West 65th Street, New York
www.polishculture-nyc.org/