Wiszniewski, Wojciech

(1946-1981)

   Innovative filmmaker who produced several acclaimed films in the 1970s belonging to the brand of Polish documentary cinema that was labeled by critics "creative documentary" (dokument kreacyjny). Like some of his fellow filmmakers, such as Grzegorz Królikiewicz, Wiszniewski incorporated techniques of fictional cinema into his documentary works and became known for his easily recognizable visual style. Before his untimely death, he produced several award-winning films, most of which, due to their political nature, were banned from distribution and not released until 1981. His best-known works include two stylized documentary films about the Stalinist period: The Story of a Man Who Produced 552 Percent of the Norm (Opowieść o człowieku, który wykonał 552% normy, 1973) and Wanda Gościmińska, the Textile Worker (Wanda Gościmińska—włókniarka, 1975), which portrayed the life of Stakhanovites and examined the Stalinist work competition. In 1975 he made one of the masterpieces of Polish documentary, The First Textbook (Elementarz, 1976), a philosophical essay on the nature of patriotism. His other films were equally successful: Carpenter (Stolarz, 1976, recipient of the Grand Prix at the festival in Oberhausen) and A Foreman on the Farm (Sztygar na zagrodzie, 1978). Wiszniewski also directed one fictional film, the medium-length tragicomedy The Story of a Certain Love (Historia pewnej miłości, 1974), which, due to its dark portrayal of everyday life, was released in 1981. The lead actor of this film, Andrzej Mel-lin, produced a documentary film in 1985, Lunatic—The Film about Wojciech Wiszniewski (Szajbus—Film o Wojtku Wiszniewskim), which provides an insight into the life and work of Wiszniewski.

   Historical Dictionary of Polish Cinema by Marek Haltof