Polish Actors, International Roles: Bielenia, Gierszał, and Świeżewski on the “Camera Action” programme
At the 17th Camera Akcja Festival, audiences will have the chance to see familiar actors in an international setting. In Wolves by Jonas Ulrich, the magnetism of Bartosz Bielenia (Corpus Christi, Prime Time) becomes both a promise and a warning. Playing the frontman of a black metal band, the actor uses his entire body and voice to create a character whose stage charisma can drown out even the most disturbing warning signs. Ulrich invited musicians from the metal scene to collaborate on the film, and a real band was formed for the production. Awarded by both critics and the young jury at the Max Ophüls Preis festival, Wolves combines the intensity of a live concert with an unsettling study of obsession that blurs the line between rebellion and fanaticism.
The Meltdown by Manuela Martelli (1976), presented in the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes, is a story told through the eyes of nine-year-old Inés (Maya O’Rourke), who is trying to find her place somewhere between childhood curiosity and the first stirrings of teenage independence. The film stars Jakub Gierszał, while Chilean director and actress Manuela Martelli sensitively captures the moment when personal coming-of-age intersects with the dramatic transformation of the world around us. At the heart of the story lies the political thaw of the 1990s and a reality in which new opportunities bring new inequalities and disappointments. The Meltdown is a coming-of-age story that also asks what we lose when the adult world changes faster than we are ready for. “A film by Chilean director and actress Manuela Martelli, it delights with layers of meaning as intricate as freshly fallen snow,” writes Ida Marszałek in Zwierciadło.
Flesh and Fuel, recipient of the Queer Palm Revelation Award, is the debut feature by Pierre Le Gall, screened at Cannes Critics’ Week. The film combines an almost documentary-style observation of truck drivers at work with a moving melodrama. Julian Świeżewski (White Courage, Sweat) and Alexis Manenti (Les Misérables) form a duo whose connection emerges primarily through glances, gestures and physical presence. This is a film for audiences seeking cinema that combines social awareness with the emotional power of romance.
The 17th Camera Action Festival will take place from October 22 to 25, 2026, in Łódź, and online from October 19 to 21, 2026, on the Think Film platform. This project is made possible thanks to funding from the City of Łódź’s budget. It is co-financed by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund—a state-administered special-purpose fund—as well as by the Polish Film Institute and the University of Łódź, the festival’s patron. The “Sound Direction” section is organized in collaboration with the Łódź Film School and the Embassy of the Kingdom of Spain in Poland. Filmweb is a partner of the section. The festival’s main partners are Monopolis, the Łódź Film School, and the Museum of Cinematography. The Camera Action Festival and the “Man in Danger” Media Festival form the “Łódź Film Festival” network.
