Film presentation by Marta Dzido

Programme

4 November: Reading from “Schweinebaumeln”

• 8.00 pm

In her collection of short stories “Schweinebaumeln”, Marta Dzido explores various facets of love, eroticism and sensuality in a vivid and revealing way. She writes impressively from different perspectives – sometimes from the here and now, sometimes in retrospect, sometimes from a woman’s perspective, sometimes from a man’s – about the contradictory feelings and experiences that accompany desire and affection. In doing so, she shows how the social norms of 1990s Poland shape her characters well into adulthood, and how liberating it can be to leave them behind.

On the evening of the event, Marta Dzido will present her collection of short stories. Antje Ritter-Miller, who will be reading the German passages, will talk about the work involved in the translation. The event will be hosted by publisher Sarah Käsmayr.

5 November: Film ‘The Women of Solidarność’

• 6.00 pm

In the early 1980s, the free and self-governing Polish trade union ‘Solidarność’ had over 10 million members. Half of them were women. The film reconstructs their story, which has scarcely been told until now. It explores the question of why the memory of the ‘female side’ of the opposition has been so largely forgotten and re-examines the political upheaval in Poland from a new perspective.

The courage of the women becomes just as clear as the severity of the security forces’ crackdown on their activism. Following the screening, Marta Dzido will be available for a Q&A session with the audience, moderated by Hansi Oostinga.

5 November: Film ‘Women of the Early Days’

• 8.30 pm

In their docudrama, the directing duo Marta Dzido and Piotr Śliwowski focus on the women who fought in Poland for women’s suffrage and gender equality. It all began with Kazimiera Bujwidowa, who campaigned in the 1880s for women to be allowed to attend the University of Warsaw.

Maria Dulębianka followed shortly afterwards, becoming the first Polish woman to stand as a candidate for parliament. The writer Zofia Nałkowska called for gender equality not only in political terms but also in moral terms. Paulina Kuczalska, described as the ‘Pope of Feminism’, also championed equality between men and women.

All these women fought tirelessly for their rights. Following the screening, Marta Dzido will be available for a Q&A session with the audience, moderated by Hansi Oostinga.

About the filmmaker

Marta Dzido (born 1981) is a writer, director and producer of documentary films. She studied at the Polish National Film, Television and Theatre School in Łódź and has already published several novels, as well as the non-fiction book *Women of Solidarity*.

Her novel *Frajda*, published in 2018, was awarded the ‘European Union Prize for Literature’.