In 1967, Marian Marzyński was a popular TV show host and filmmaker in Poland. But then a seemingly faraway military clash sparked an unexpected conflict within the Polish communist party that led its Jewish members to be accused of anti-Polish sentiments. The conflict developed into an anti-Semitic campaign that affected all of Polish Jewish society and led to the emigration of the majority of the remaining Polish Jews, whose numbers had already been dwindled due to the Holocaust. Emigrating away from an authoritarian regime, Marian was able to process the events around him by filming them from his perspective, something he was previously unable to do. He continues to film his personal stories today.

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Time stamps

[00:11 ] 1968: a year of global unrest 
[02:08 ] Escape from the ghetto 
[03:17 ] Never forget to lie
[07:13 ] The war is over. Jewish identity after the war
[08:22 ] Marian becomes a journalist
[10:28 ] Internationalism vs. nationalism
[10:46 ] The Six-Day War
[12:08 ] Censoring 'Dziady' in the National Theatre
[12:39 ] The mechanisms of hostility
[14:55 ] Marian decides to leave 
[16:16 ] First stop: Denmark
[17:29 ] Marian films emigration 
[18:38 ] Who were we?
[19:45 ] What is emigration?
[20:13 ] Film-making after emigration
[21:30 ] Moving to the USA
[23:06 ] Humour 
[24:12 ] Marian’s returns to Poland
[25:40 ] The inner child

Further reading

• Marian’s website
• Interview with Marian Marzyński about his film 'Shtetl' // on PBS.org

Further watching

• Life on Marz // Marian Marzyński's film on Vimeo.com
• Skibet/Hatikvah // Marian Marzyński's film on Vimeo.com
• Jewish Blues // Marian Marzyński's film on Vimeo.com
• Shtetl // Marian Marzyński's film on Vimeo.com

Credits

Written & produced by Monika Proba
Edited by Wojtek Oleksiak, Adam Zulawski & Nitzan Reisner
Hosted by Nitzan Reisner & Adam Zulawski
Scoring & sound design by Wojciech Oleksiak