BEST PROGRAMMING:
MURANOW, WARZAWA (POLAND)
EXHIBITOR: ROMAN GUTEK, GUTEK FILMS LTD
Located in the Muranow district in the heart of the city, the
Muranow cinema is a veritable Warsaw institution. For half a century generations of Polish filmgoers have made this bastion of film culture their home. In the rapidly changing Polish market marked by a boom in multiplexes, where the number of auditoria in Warsaw alone went from 25 in 1999 to 150 in 2004, the Muranow has become the very symbol of enduring and adaptable cinema exhibition.
Much of the credit for the Muranow’s longevity goes to exhibitor
Roman Gutek. A former habitué, he took over the cinema in 1981 and has become one of the principal distributors of European films in Poland.
The Muranow was given a complete overhaul at the beginning of the 90s, with financial support from the Ministry of Culture and Art. Today it has a modern look, with an elegant and hospitable central atrium boasting a bookshop, DVD boutique, cafeteria and poster displays. Two large theatres with 250 seats are situated at either end of the hall, equipped with the latest technology. A member of Europa Cinemas for over 10 years, the Muranow proposes a rich and diversified programming typified by curiosity and the thrill of new discoveries. One of Roman Gutek’s guiding principles is to keep films running as long as possible. As an example he cites Patrice Chéreau’s
His Brother, which ran for more than two months. And Gutek does not hesitate to bill more experimental films like Lars von Trier’s
The Five Obstructions.
Faced with competition from the multiplexes, the Muranow trumps with its convivial atmosphere where artists can rub shoulders with their public. Numerous filmmakers have taken part in discussions within the cinema’s walls. Among them figure Agnès Jaoui with
The Taste of Others, Paul Auster with
Lulu on the Bridge, Michelangelo Antonioni with
Beyond the Clouds, as well as Wim Wenders and Patrice Chéreau. In the days to come the Muranow will welcome Swedish actress Harriet Andersson for an Ingmar Bergman retrospective during which Bergman’s last film
Saraband will be shown. Polish filmmaker Andrezj Wajda also chose the Muranow to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his filmmaking career – the cinema is his favourite place in Warsaw.
The Muranow also stands out for its events programme, with numerous festivals dedicated to Austrian, Spanish, Italian, Latin American and Russian cinema, and special screenings for young audiences and school groups. A dynamic record for a cinema whose director plans to transform it into a four-theatre complex in response to the changing Polish market, so as to provide an even better welcome to the 130,000 annual visitors.
(November 2004)
www.muranow.gutekfilm.com.pl
