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Lotna: Colonel Rómmel

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Lotna: Facing various problems
Andrzej Wajda Film-maker
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Fantastyczny temat, fantastyczny. Można było zrobić z tego genialny film. No ale niestety na przeszkodzie stanęło kilka... kilka elementów, których wtedy w ogóle nie brałem pod uwagę. Byłem strasznie pewny siebie, no ale bez pewności siebie jest trudno robić w ogóle filmy. Nie miałem świadomości po pierwsze: że nic nie wiem na temat koni, w tym sensie, jakie to jest zwierzę, co można od niego wymagać, jak robić z nim zdjęcia; drugie, bardzo ważne – nie wiedziałem... nie było aktorów jeżdżących konno, dlatego że konny sport został totalnie wyparty przez Polskę Ludową jako sport arystokracji. Jakieś wyścigi konne może tam i były, ale nikt z młodych aktorów nie jeździł konno, bo nikogo nie było na to stać też. W związku z tym tu też bardzo było trudno o obsadę, żeby wziąć aktorów, którzy no mogliby wsiąść na konia, trudno było zrobić ten film bez takich aktorów. W rezultacie Jerzy Pichelski, jak później się okazało, przyznał się, że brał udział w wojnie '20 roku z Bolszewikami, co oczywiście wtedy było strasznym przestępstwem, no ale jak zaprzyjaźniliśmy się... To ten, który gra rotmistrza, tak pięknie wygląda. No to on umiał jeździć konno jeszcze z dawnych czasów, się okazało. Adam Pawlikowski zawzięty był, on jak się dostał do niewoli po Powstaniu Warszawskim, to jego przy... w niewoli, w oflagu w oficerskim obozie, jego przygarnęli oficerowie I Pułku Ułanów, bo chcieli dobre nazwisko. Pawlikowski – może być oficerem, no i po Powstaniu Warszawskim, no i tam go... ale nauczyli go angielskiego, ale nie nauczyli go jeździć konno. W związku z tym on szalenie ambitny po kilku lekcjach, bo nie mieliśmy dużo czasu, no jakoś się na tym koniu próbował utrzymać. Gorzej było z najmłodszym z nich. No ale to wszystko nie byli jeźdźcy, którzy by mogli, że tak powiem, tymi końmi powodować tak jakby... jak by to powinno być. Dalej, moim doradcą i wspaniałym człowiekiem, którego poznałem dzięki filmowi Lotna był pułkownik Rómmel, brat generała Rómmla obrońcy Warszawy.

It was a fantastic subject and it could be made into a brilliant film. But unfortunately, there were a few obstacles which at the time I hadn't taken into account at all. I was very self-assured, but it's hard to make films without any self-assurance. Firstly, I didn't realise that I knew nothing about horses in the sense of what sort of animal it is, what can be expected of it, how the shots can be taken. Secondly, and very importantly, none of the actors were riders because horse-riding had been totally obliterated in the People's Republic of Poland as being an aristocratic pastime. Perhaps horse-racing still carried on somewhere, but none of the young actors rode because no one could afford it. Therefore it was difficult to pick a cast with actors who would be able to get up on a horse yet it was hard to make this film without such actors. So, as later transpired, Jerzy Pichelski admitted that he'd fought against the Bolsheviks in '20, which at the time was a terrible crime, but by then we'd become friends... He's the one who plays the cavalry commander and he looks wonderful. It turned out that he knew how to ride from long ago. Adam Pawlikowski was determined, when he was captured after the Warsaw Uprising and held in an officer's POW camp, he was taken under the wing of the 1st Uhlan Regiment because they wanted - a good name, Pawlikowski, he was officer material - so after the Warsaw Uprising, they taught him English but they didn't teach him how to ride a horse! He was very ambitious so after a few lessons, because we didn't have much time, he tried to stay up on the horse somehow. It was worse with the younger ones, but then none of them was a horseman and so they didn't know how to handle horses in the proper way. My adviser, who was a wonderful man and whom I met thanks to this film, was Colonel Rómmel, the brother of General Rómmel, who defended Warsaw.

Polish film director Andrzej Wajda (1926-2016) was a towering presence in Polish cinema for six decades. His films, showing the horror of the German occupation of Poland, won awards at Cannes and established his reputation as both story-teller and commentator on Poland's turbulent history. As well as his impressive career in TV and film, he also served on the national Senate from 1989-91.

Listeners: Jacek Petrycki

Cinematographer Jacek Petrycki was born in Poznań, Poland in 1948. He has worked extensively in Poland and throughout the world. His credits include, for Agniezka Holland, Provincial Actors (1979), Europe, Europe (1990), Shot in the Heart (2001) and Julie Walking Home (2002), for Krysztof Kieslowski numerous short films including Camera Buff (1980) and No End (1985). Other credits include Journey to the Sun (1998), directed by Jesim Ustaoglu, which won the Golden Camera 300 award at the International Film Camera Festival, Shooters (2000) and The Valley (1999), both directed by Dan Reed, Unforgiving (1993) and Betrayed (1995) by Clive Gordon both of which won the BAFTA for best factual photography. Jacek Petrycki is also a teacher and a filmmaker.

Tags: Peopl's Republic of Poland, First Uhlan Regiment, Warsaw Uprising, Warsaw, Lotna, Jerzy Pichelski, Adam Pawlikowski

Duration: 2 minutes, 54 seconds

Date story recorded: August 2003

Date story went live: 24 January 2008