>>>THE HOUSE OF MERRY RETIREMENT (Poland)
It is the year 2001. Warsaw. Piotr Manolik, called Menelik, is a very promising young architect. He has just won quite a serious competition for the architectural studio he works for.
In a circle of close friends he organizes a party on this occasion, which - as usual – turns to a very intense one. Menelik and his friends are namely hedonists who aim to experience pleasures of life in every possible situation in big amounts. They even make jokes about it saying they could live like that till their late old age... maybe even live once together and having fun till the end in spite of everything ?
And so they make decision that one day, when they will make a fortune, each of them will dedicate some money to buy an old guest house in mountains and they will move there to live together for the time of the autumn of their lives.
The whole next night Menelik he prepares the final project of an investment. In the morning it comes out that as a result of some kind of a swindle the project has to be changed. Menelik impulsively leaves the workshop of his boss – Celiński giving up working there.
Together with his friend Mareczek they start their own business. They learn fast that private business comes along with a bigger stress and tension and with smaller and bigger everyday compromises...
Summer. The whole circle of friends runs away from Warsaw for a weekend over the sea, to celebrate Klein’s birthday as they do every year. On the beach Klein treats everyone with a hallucination drug and here it starts – comic-paranoid-mystical journey on the border of a real world and a surreal one, which for Menelik ends the other day when he, exhausted, falls asleep on the moss in the forest.
When he wakes up he finds out that... it is the autumn 40 years later in the house called “the house of merry retirement” where he lives together with his friends from the youth.
Terrified Menelik desperately looks for a way out from this horrifying reality. However, deeper he enters into it more doubts he has whether it is a dream or rather – how his friends claim – he lived his life and now as an old ailing man he has memory problems...
Darek Błaszczyk
Born in Warsaw (Poland)
Historian of art (Warsaw University), scriptwriter and film director, multimedia artist, VJ.
In the years 1994-2001 member of fabrika cókierków art. group from Warsaw, 1990-2001 vocalist and musician in several alternative Warsaw projects (falemarengo, peacedancejass, SZCZYPEK, session3, szum'n'szelest). Since 1998 he has been a VJ (cooperation with musicians Smolik, 15minutprojekt, Masala Sound System, Astigmaticfestival). Since he ahs been making "s-forma" program (about video art & VJ's) for TVP Kultura.
His short film Tylko jedna noc received several awards: Silver Castle Award on OFFCINEMA2004 international festival in Poznań; 3rd Prize of OSKARIADA2005 in Warsaw; Honorable Mention on the festival 11th Films' Summer in Torun 2005; Honorable Mention on the Festival of Independent Cinema In Zamość 2005.
Filmography:
fajans (experimental short) -director & photography, 1999
Zmruź oczy (dir. A.Jakimowski) – 2nd film director, 2001-3
Tylko jedna noc (short)- direction & screenplay, 2004
Dom wesołej starości – screenplay of theatrical feature film, 2002-3
(preparing for production process)
Niech żyje pogrzeb!!! – screenplay of short movie; in cooperation with Paweł Składanek, 2006 (preparing for production)
Important multimedia works:
'VIDEOMEDYTACJEcókierek' - interactive video installation; collective exhibition in Teatr Academia, Warsaw, 1999;
'CZERWONY KRZYŻ/PÓŁKSIĘŻYC' light installation on Warsaw Business Center,1999.
'PUTANASANTAcókierek' - photo installation; Akademia Theater, Warsaw, 2000.
'MAŁYJANEKcókierek' stamp-painting four day performance; Café Galeria między nami, Warsaw, 2002
'Kabała na murach/cókierek' projection performance in Warsaw Prague; Academia TheaterFest 'SĄSIEDZI dla SĄSIADÓW' (cooperation with Sylwek Łuczak), 2002.
'KiCiKiCiINSTRUMENTcókierek' video installation, Prague Fest 'SĄSIEDZI dla SĄSIADÓW', 2003.
to come/cinemagica slide performance fashion show for Anna Kuczyńska, Tokio Fashion Week, Japan, 2004.
