Identification Marks: None

The action of Skolimowski’s feature début begins on 1 September, the anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War. It presents one day in the life of Andrzej Leszczyc, a student of ichthyology who, between the morning and late afternoon, gives up on his studies, breaks up with his partner, meets another woman and bids her farewell to join the army. Leszczyc perfectly conveys the mindset of the first generation of Poles to grow up after the war, during the so called period of ‘small stabilisation’ under Party leader Wladyslaw Gomulka. He is sceptical about the achievements of war veterans, yet at the same time experiences an inner void and looks for some purpose in life.
Identification Marks: None is renowned as much for its content as for the way it was made. It was assembled from pieces of reels allocated to Skolimowski, then a student in the Lódz Film School, for making various school exercises. The difficult production circumstances explain why the director cast himself in the main part and for the roles of three different women chose his then partner, Elzbieta Czyzewska. The casting, and repetition of some visual motifs, such as staircases, create a surreal atmosphere. As Skolimowski’s début remained the only ‘independent’ film made in socialist Poland, it attracts new generations of viewers, including students of directing, dreaming of emulating Skolimowski’s early success. (EMK)