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Andrzej Żuławski

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Andrzej Żuławski
Żuławski, c. 1985–1990
Born(1940-11-22)22 November 1940
Lviv, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
Died17 February 2016(2016-02-17) (aged 75)
Warsaw, Poland
NationalityPolish
Occupation(s)Film director
Novelist
Years active1971–2016
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1971; div. 1976)​
PartnerSophie Marceau (1985–2001)
Children3, including Xawery Żuławski
RelativesMirosław Żuławski (father), Jerzy Żuławski (grandfather)

Andrzej Żuławski (Polish: [ˈandʐɛj ʐuˈwafskʲi]; 22 November 1940 – 17 February 2016) was a Polish film director and writer best known for his 1981 film Possession. Żuławski often went against mainstream commercialism in his films, and enjoyed success mostly with European art-house audiences.

In the late 1950s, he studied cinema in France. His second feature, The Devil (1972), was banned in communist Poland, and Żuławski went to France. After the success of That Most Important Thing: Love in 1975, he returned to Poland where he spent two years making On the Silver Globe (not released until 1988). The work on this film was interrupted and destroyed by the authorities. After that, Żuławski moved to France where he became known for controversial and violent art-house films such as Possession (1981). Żuławski is also known for his work with actresses including Romy Schneider, Isabelle Adjani and Sophie Marceau.

His films have received awards at various international film festivals. Żuławski had also written several novels, for example: Il était Un Verger, Lity Bór (a.k.a. La Forêt Forteresse), W Oczach Tygrysa, and Ogród Miłości.

Biography

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Żuławski was born in Lviv, Ukraine; his father Mirosław Żuławski was a Polish civil servant (and later diplomat) who had studied and worked in that city while it was under Polish control and prior to its annexation by the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1939.

Żuławski was an assistant of the filmmaker Andrzej Wajda.[1] He studied at the prestigious Institut des hautes études cinématographiques (IDHEC) in Paris and in the Department of Philosophy at the Sorbonne.[2]

When his second film The Devil was banned in Poland,[3] he decided to move to France, where he made That Most Important Thing: Love (1975) with Romy Schneider.[4]

After returning to Poland he worked for two years on a film which the authorities did not allow him to finish (On the Silver Globe), based on a book by his great-uncle Jerzy Żuławski.[5] Since then he lived and worked mostly in France, making art films.

Being described as a maverick who always defied mainstream commercialism, Żuławski enjoyed success mostly with the European art-house audiences. His wild, imaginative, and controversial pictures have received awards at various international film festivals. He also wrote the novels Il était Un Verger, Lity Bór (a.k.a. La Forêt Forteresse), W Oczach Tygrysa, and Ogród Miłości.[5]

In 2006 he was the Head of the Jury at the 28th Moscow International Film Festival.[6]

Żuławski worked many times with composer Andrzej Korzyński, beginning in The Third Part of the Night (1971). Their last collaboration was for Cosmos (2015), which was also Żuławski's last film.

On 17 February 2016, Żuławski died at a hospital in Warsaw from cancer.[7][8]

Personal life

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Zulawski with his then partner Sophie Marceau, 1988

Żuławski's first wife was Barbara Baranowska,[9] a member of the Polish School of Posters. She created the iconic French version of the poster for Żuławski's Possession. Her first husband, Adolf Rudnicki, inspired the character Abe in the movie.[9]

Żuławski had three sons from different relationships. One of Żuławski's ex-wives was Małgorzata Braunek, who was a Polish film and stage actress. Their son, Xawery, is also a film director.

His relationship with the painter Hanna Wolska resulted in the birth of his son Ignacy.[10]

He was in a relationship with French actress Sophie Marceau for sixteen years, with whom he made four films over a 15-year period (L'Amour braque, My Nights Are More Beautiful Than Your Days, La Note bleue, Fidelity). They had a son Vincent together. They broke up in 2001.

From 2007 to 2008 Żuławski dated Weronika Rosati, daughter of Polish politician Dariusz Rosati. In 2010 Żuławski released a book titled "Nocnik", which included a character allegedly based on Rosati named Esther. Rosati sued Żuławski and the book's publisher for violating her right to privacy and dignity as a woman as the book included intimate details about her. Żuławski lost the case in 2015.[3]

Filmography

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Feature films

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Year Title Director Writer Notes
1971 The Third Part of the Night Yes Yes
1972 The Devil Yes Yes
1975 That Most Important Thing: Love Yes Yes
1981 Possession Yes Yes Nominated—Palme d'Or
1984 The Public Woman Yes Yes Nominated—César Award for Best Adaptation
1985 L'Amour braque Yes Yes
1987 Malady of Love No Story
1988 On the Silver Globe Yes Yes
1989 My Nights Are More Beautiful Than Your Days Yes Yes
1989 Boris Godunov Yes Yes
1991 The Blue Note Yes Yes
1996 Szamanka Yes No
2000 Fidelity Yes Yes
2015 Cosmos Yes Yes
2019 Bird Talk No Yes

Short films and television

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Year Title Director Writer Notes
1958 La sorcière Yes Yes Short film
1969 The Song of Triumphant Love Yes Yes TV movie
Pavoncello Yes Yes TV Short
1972 Theatre Macabre Yes No TV series; 2 episodes

References

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  1. ^ Mira Liehm; Antonín J. Liehm (1980). The Most Important Art Soviet and Eastern European Film After 1945. University of California Press. p. 378. ISBN 978-0-520-04128-8.
  2. ^ "The Unbelievable Genius and Hysterical Excess of Andrzej Żuławski". culture.pl. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  3. ^ a b Atkinson, Michael (2008). Exile Cinema Filmmakers at Work beyond Hollywood. SUNY Press. p. 79. ISBN 978-0-7914-7861-5.
  4. ^ María Luisa Amador; Jorge Ayala Blanco (2006). Cartelera cinematográfica, 1980–1989. UNAM. p. 425. ISBN 978-970-32-3605-3.
  5. ^ a b Culture.pl
  6. ^ "28th Moscow International Film Festival (2006)". MIFF. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  7. ^ "Uncompromising Polish film-maker Andrzej Żulawski dies". Polish Radio. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  8. ^ "Nie żyje reżyser, scenarzysta i pisarz Andrzej Żuławski". PolskieRadio.pl. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  9. ^ a b Janisse, Kier-La (9 January 2015). House of Psychotic Women An Autobiographical Topography of Female Neurosis in Horror and Exploitation Films. FAB Press. ISBN 9781903254820.
  10. ^ Bergan, Ronald (21 February 2016). "Andrzej Żuławski obituary". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 28 May 2024. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
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