THEMERSON & THEMERSON a film by Wiktoria Szymanska produced by Wiktoria Szymanska, Luna W, UK & Farid Rezkallah, 24 Images, France
UK/ FRANCE 2010 DOCUMENTARY 72&52 MIN FROMAT HDCAM, DIGI BETA START PRODUCTION 01 2008 END PRODUCTION 01 2010 PRODUCED BY LUNA W COPRODUCED BY 24 IMAGES ARTE COFINANCED BY INSTYTUT MICKIEWICZA, PISF, TVP, AVRO, CNC CREW WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY WIKTORIA SZYMANSKA PRODUCTION MANAGER JOE GOUGH EDITOR EWA LENKIEWICZ IMAGE WOJCIECH STARON SOUND DOMINIQUE LANCELOT SYNOPSIS The film is retracing the story of this unusual and unique union. Franciszka and Stefan Themerson lived and worked together for almost sixty years. First in Poland, France, to eventually settled in England. The only time when they were separated was the outbreak of the Second War but even then they remained connected. She was a dreamer, he was a thinker, He had a question, She was the answer, Two people, once met and created the poetry of life, inspired generations of artists in Europe, Roman Polanski was one of them. Franciszka and Stefan Themerson lived and worked together over sixty years first in Poland, France, England. It's well hidden treasure in the culture and art of the XX century. This is their love story. It is said that, in the spring of 1975, after giving an interview for TV, Stefan Themerson experienced a temporary bout of memory. It suited his way of thinking and reflected how he and his wife approached their life and art. Though they don't remember how they met, they made films together. Her lines often gave life to his imagination. In 1938, they left Warsaw for Paris but one winter's day the Pont St. Louis collapsed and split them up. Their unusual love story is the backdrop to the art and story of these two exceptional citizens of the world. 2010 LUNA W / 24 IMAGES / ARTE Distribution DECKERT DISTRIBUTION
Wiktoria (Victora) Szymańska lives in London, works in Poland, France, Mexico. WIKTORIA SZYMANSKA films: THE FALL, STORY OF ARCHIE - EXPERIMENTAL FICTION,PROD. JOE PARADISE 2002, 7 MIN, USA PARISMANIA - FICTION, PROD. VIASAT 2007, 10 MIN, UK MROZEK, PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST - DOCUMENTARY (REPORTAGE), PROD.TVP 2004, 52MIN, POL THE ARCHIVE, DOCUMENTARY, PROD AVRO/ LUNA W, 52MIN, UK THEMERSON AND THEMERSON, DOCUMENTARY, PROD. LUNA W/24 IMAGES/ARTE 2009, 72MIN, UK Wiktoria (Victoria) Szymanska was begotten in Gdansk. Having passion for art, she went to the musical school and then Art College. At the age of 17, she moved to St Andrew University where she obtained a scholarship in Literature, later she got bachelors and masters in Anthropology. Wanting to be the citizen of the world, she worked and travelled to New York and in beloved Mexico. In 2004 and moved her way to Paris to graduate film and Art Film studies at the Sorbonne. Since 2005, Wiktoria worked in film production, in development of international film project with Parisian film houses also worked as director assistant on short and documentary films. She has been an executive producer on films like Manon sur le Bitume ( Oscar Nominated 2008). In 2006 she started a work in TV, ARTE collaborating on the CHIC, to eventually work with VIASAT as a promo director and producer. After completing a documentary course, ARCHIDOC at LA FEMIS in Paris, which directed her into the archive based creative documentary. Recent collaboration: AVRO, BBC4. Production company LUNAW UK is mainly producing polish- English comproductions of short and features documentary, together with Esodoc and Polish Film Institute. Currect projects : BENCH STORIES, IRMAS DIARY, Series on Paliative Medicine.
24 Images presentation: 24 images today has a catalogue of more than 65 documentary films, 7 short feature films and 30 live recordings. We produce about 8 documentaries and 3 recordings every year. Our objective is to make films that tell powerful human stories, films that transport us around the world and into the past, that compel us to incessantly question our condition and that testify to new artistic approaches. It is with this objective in mind that we have accompanied in the past filmmakers like Walter Salles, Jacques Deschamps, Luc Decaster, Philippe Gautier, Luc Riolon, Bertrand Schmitt, Michel Leclerc, Laurent Desprez, Jean-Marc Birraux and Luc Perez. FARID REZKALLAH Farid Rezkallah, produce and develop since 1996 in the company 24 images mainly documentary and live recording. Main productions: Themerson & Themerson - documentary film by Wictoria Szymanska, 71' Etat d'elue - documentary film by Luc Decaster, released in theatres, 94' Dream of the Facture - documentary film by Luc Decaster, 98', released in theatres Elephas Maximus - documentary film by Luc Decaster, 3 x 43' Voyage in troubled waters - documentary film by Luc Riolon, 52' The Colours of "Jours de fête" - documentary by Jacques DESCHAMPS, 26' Svankmajer's Dreams - documentary film by Bertrand SCHMITT, Michel LECLERC, 58' Shaman - animated film by Luc Perez, 10'