What does this mean for Łódź?
Being a part of the international UNESCO Creative Cities Network means that our city can:
- continue to increase sustainable development in creativity and innovation for the film industry in Łódź.
- foster innovation through international collaboration and knowledge exchange between fellow Cities of Film and Creative Cities.
- support the development of creative businesses and the creative workforce of Łódź through collaborative partnerships and projects.
- foster cooperation in the creative sector, aiming to accelerate local, regional and international initiatives and partnerships.
What makes Łódź a City of Film?
City of Festivals
Every year, Łódź holds over 10 festivals covering various film-related areas and topics. Festivals include Camera Action Film Critics Festival, European Cinema Forum CINERGIA and Summer Film Festiwal "Polówka". Łódź hosts a further nine festivals and events relating to other UCCN fields, from literature and the Puls of Literature Festival, to design and the Łódź Design Festival and FotoFestival, to music at the Rubinstein Piano Festival, to Crafts and Folk Arts at the International Festival of Youth Creativity FOLK INSPIRATIONS.
Professional film education
Łódź is home to four state-run academies, and all four recognise the value in training future professionals in film theory and practice. The world-renown Łódź Film School offers full-time studies in skills both behind and in front of the camera, from film direction and editing, to screenwriting, animation and television production. The Strzemiński Academy of Art educates future props masters, costume, lighting and multimedia
designers. With academies dedicated to music, film theory and design, film education is pushing new boundaries in Łódź.
Film Production
Filmmaking is deeply rooted in Łódź’s history, and the city is recognised nationally and internationally. Great masterpieces, “Kanał” and “The Promised Land” by Andrzej Wajda or “Knife in the Water” by Roman Polanski were made by The Feature Film Studio. Running since 1949, the Educational Film Studio has produced more than 5000 films made by several generations of filmmakers. Animation studio, Se-ma-for, has created popular cartoons and stop-motion animation, including “Tango” (1980) and “Peter and the Wolf” (2006), both awarded Oscars® for Best Animated Short.
An incredible adventure started. The adventure with a city. The city which, day by day, revealed to us more and more of its extraordinary past.
Andrzej Wajda, director
Łódź is a great film city.
Paweł Pawlikowski, director
Photo: Thiago Piccoli (CC BY 2.0 license)I like how Łódź looks like during the day and how it looks at night. Łódź made me start dreaming.
David Lynch, director
Latest News
Female Landscape – a joint project of Potsdam and Lodz The UNESCO Cities of Film Łódź and Potsdam are pleased to announce and invite you to a joint series of… Read more
2021 Call for UNESCO Creative Cities now open! Created in 2004, the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) fosters international cooperation within and across cities of the world that… Read more
UNESCO Film Cities Film Education and Media Literacy Forum 2020 On Thursday 26 November 2020, UNESCO Cities of Film from around the world came together to deliver an online forum to… Read more
“Kill It And Leave This Town” honored in Annecy The latest animation by Mariusz Wilczyński "Kill It And Leave This Town" received the jury distinction in the main competition… Read more
Recent Filming
Want to find out more about Łódź?
Discover more about Łódź's work with fellow Cities of Film and Creative Cities on the International Collaboration pages.
Visit the Łódź City of Film website for the latest on activity in Łódź.