KrakowInformer.com

OFAFA

Krakow may not be the film capital of Poland, but it seems the film industry has settled in quite well. Arguably Poland's most important director, Andrzej Wajda lives in Cracow. The city itself has quite a nice network of cinemas, from atmospheric art houses to state of the art multiplexes. Then there are the festivals – first of all, the Krakow Film Festival, then the Etiuda and Anima, gathering the world's best short and animated movies; then there's the Off Camera, an alternative film festival included in the big Six Senses strategy; and finally the Krakow Film Music Festival, for those who'd rather listen and watch than watch and listen. And there is one more.

The OFAFA – Ogolnopolski Festiwal Autorskich Filmów Animowanych – National Festival of Authors' Animated Movies – is the only festival in Poland devoted solely to Polish Animated Film. The OFAFA was first organized in 1993, and since then it helped discover many young talents.

The OFAFA is composed of three competitions. In the first one, professional creators of animated movies compete for the Gold, Silver and Bronze Lines. The second part of the OFAFA is devoted to films directed by students of Polish film schools – the winner receives a Grand Prix or a Special Jury Award. The winner of the third part – devoted to movies made by amateurs – can get a simple Grand Prize.

Among the emerging talents who participated in the OFAFA was Tomasz Bagiński, the author of the Cathedral, nominated for the Academy Award in 2003 (Short Animated Movie). Baginski is also the only double winner of a prestigious American film festival called SIGGRAPH.

Apart from the competitions, the OFAFA includes several other events, such as retrospectives, anniversaries, film music concerts and meetings with famous animated movie creators.

This year's OFAFA festival took place between December 11^th and December 13^th. So we'll probably have to wait another year for the next OFAFA festival.