Graphic author: Weronika Wasilewska
Polish Animation Research Group
We conduct and initiate research in the field of Polish film animation. Recognising the potential in this field's research, we carry out activities and projects – scientific and popularising – dedicated to animated movies. Since the beginning of 2021, we have been working on a scientific project devoted to the comparison of the fields of Polish and Czech film animation. Tasks include the development of a common methodology, the preparation of interview scripts, and the conduct of interviews, work, and archive searches. The activities of the Polish Animation Research Group also include mentoring people interested in writing academic articles and BA and MA theses on Polish animation. We also support the preparation of conference presentations and research proposals.
Group Members
- Ewa Ciszewska (ewa.ciszewska [at] uni.lodz.pl)
- Martyna Gonciarz (martyna.gonciarz [at] edu.uni.lodz.pl)
- Agata Hofelmajer-Roś (agata.hofelmajer-ros [at] us.edu.pl
- Joanna Kosińska-Wajcht (joanna.kosinska.wajcht [at] edu.uni.lodz.pl)
- Oliwia Nadarzycka (oliwia.nadarzycka [at] edu.uni.lodz.pl)
- Michał Pabiś-Orzeszyna (michal.pabis [at] uni.lodz.pl)
- Dominik Piekarski (dominik.piekarski [at] edu.uni.lodz.pl)
- Szymon Szul (szymon.szul [at] edu.uni.lodz.pl)
- Agata Czajkowska (agata.czajkowska [at] edu.uni.lodz.pl)
Follow us on Facebook: Grupa Badawcza Polska Animacja (https://www.facebook.com/GBPA.PARG))
Projects
- the implementation of the scientific project "Animation studios in Gottwaldov and Lodz (1945/47-1990) – Comparative Collective Biography", carried out under the CEUS-UNISONO programme (2021-2024) by prof. Pavel Skopal from Masaryk University in Brno and Dr. Ewa Ciszewska from the University of Lodz;
- Oliwia Nadarzycka's project entitled 'Transformations of Film Production at the Studio of Small Film Forms Se-Ma-For in Lodz in the Years 1960-1968' as part of the Students' Research Grants of the University of Lodz; (2021)
- Szymon Szul's project entitled 'Stanisław Lenartowicz's artistic career in the context of the operating conditions of the Studio of Small Film Forms Se-Ma-For in Lodz' as part of the Students' Research Grants of the University of Lodz; (2021)
Expert activities
- Consultation on prepared texts on Polish animation for the Scientific Circle of Avant-gardists at the University of Lodz (May-September 2024).
- Organization of a study visit of animated cinema researcher Jennifer Barker to Lodz (July 2024).
- Dr. Ewa Ciszewska and Szymon Szul, M.A., worked as consultants and authors of texts for the exhibition on film animation at the Museum of Cinema in Lodz "Palace full of fairy tales". Student Dominik Piekarski also joined the work. More than a year of cooperation with curators, archivists and designers resulted in an exhibition about Polish animation for children, which premiered on March 22, 2024.
GBPA's members and staff collaborate with
O!PLA Ogólnopolski Festiwal Polskiej Animacji, StopTrik Festival, Rising of Lusitania Festival, Animocje Festival in Bydgoszcz, Kamera Akcja Festival, Momakin, Museum of Cinema in Lodz, Archaeological and Ethnographic Museum in Lodz.
Popular science texts
- Ewa Ciszewska, Agata Hofelmajer-Roś, The hidden nature of the puppet film as a collective work: the Polish ‘Se-Ma-For’ Studio of Small Film Forms, April 22, 2024, blog.animationstudies.org
- Oliwia Nadarzycka, A Brief History of Polish Animation Festivals (1957-2005), May 24, 2021, blog.animationstudies.org
- Ewa Ciszewska, Modalities of Independent Animation in State-Socialist Countries for the Example of Poland, March 8, 2021 blog.animationstudies.org
Publications
- Ewa Ciszewska, Agata Hofelmajer-Roś, Michał Pabiś-Orzeszyna, Szymon Szul, Społeczne światy Studia Małych Form Filmowych „Se-Ma-For” w Łodzi [Social Worlds of the “Se-Ma-For” Studio of Small Film Forms in Lodz], Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego, Łódź [2025, in preparation]
- Ewa Ciszewska,Szymon Szul, Animation workers from “Se-Ma-For” Studio of Small Film Forms in Lodz (dataset), 2024, hdl.handle.net/11089/52081
- Ewa Ciszewska, Materialne warunki wytwarzania konwencji filmu lalkowego w Polsce. Działalność Ryszarda Potockiego i Zenona Wasilewskiego w latach 1945-1950 jako architektów Studia Małych Form Filmowych „Se-Ma-For” w Łodzi [Material Factors Influencing Puppet Film Conventions in Poland: Examining Ryszard Potocki and Zenon Wasilewski's Role as Architects of the Se-Ma-For Studio of Small Film Forms in Lodz (1945-1950)], „Pleograf. Historyczno-Filmowy Kwartalnik Filmoteki Narodowej”, Nr 4, 2023, pp. 6-31. https:/doi.org/10.56351/PLEOGRAF.2023.4.01
- Ewa Ciszewska, Dominik Piekarski, Początki drogi twórczej Jerzego Kotowskiego: szkic do biografii, [A sketch for the biography of Jerzy Kotowski] „Pleograf. Historyczno-Filmowy Kwartalnik Filmoteki Narodowej”, Nr 4, 2023, pp. 32-43. https:/doi.org/10.56351/PLEOGRAF.2023.4.02
- Inaczej rozdane karty. Ze Stefanem Schabenbeckiem rozmawia Szymon Szul, „Pleograf. Historyczno-Filmowy Kwartalnik Filmoteki Narodowej”, Nr 4, 2023, pp. 116-140 https:/doi.org/10.56351/PLEOGRAF.2023.4.07