The New Technologies zone at the 15th “Rebellious, Unbroken, Cursed” Festival in Gdynia.

In recent days, Gdynia hosted the 15th “Rebellious, Unbroken, Cursed” International Film Festival, whose institutional partner was the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN). As part of this year’s festival, IPN’s New Technology Division presented its immersive projects at Grunwaldzki Square in Gdynia.

Visitors to the New Technologies zone eagerly tested their strength by breaking ciphers
and deciding the fate of the Polish-Bolshevik war in “Cyphers Game”,as well as defending occupied Warsaw in the IPN’s latest game “Warsaw Rising: City of Heroes”. Also appreciated was a sentimental journey into the virtual interior of a flat from the time of the People’s Republic of Poland in a block of flats in Wrocław in the VR application “Szybowcowa ‘87”.

Both older and younger participants experienced a lot of reflection while watching the VR film etude “Świadectwo poMOCY” telling about the tragic fate of the Ulma family from Markowa. Also on display near the Office of New Technologies zone was the exhibition entitled “Death for Humanity. The Ulma Family”, which takes a closer look at the fate of this extraordinary Polish family that helped Jews during the German occupation. The film etude and exhibition were prepared in connection with the beatification of Wiktoria and Józef Ulma and their seven children.

Near the New Technologies zone, the IPN Publishing House was also present with its mobile bookstore offering new publications as well as free supplements.

During the festival’s closing gala at the Musical Theatre in Gdynia, Deputy President of the Institute of National Remembrance Mateusz Szpytma, PhD, received the “Door to Freedom” statuette – a special distinction awarded for courage and dedication to the heroes of the background, supporting activists of the independence and solidarity underground, as well as for those steadfastly fighting for freedom.

The main prize in the Polish Documentary Film Competition for the best documentary of the Rebellious, Unbroken, Cursed Festival – Złoty Opornik [The Golden Resistor] – was awarded to the film Stanisław Helski. Dlatego, directed by Michał Torz, telling the story of an extraordinary hero – Stanisław Helski – a farmer and leader of the Peasant Solidarity, whose biography shows the brutality of the communist system. It was one of five documentaries produced by the Institute of National Remembrance that competed for awards in documentary film competitions.

The best feature film of the festival was the German film “The Last Execution”. The jury awarded second place to the Hungarian film “Blockade”. Honorary artistic awards went to the German “Silent Forest” and Ukrainian “Klondike”. The Rebellious, Unbroken, Cursed Festival also featured films from Poland, Spain, Finland, Estonia and Japan.