The third edition of the Literary Film Festival FILMATURA will take place from 20–29 November at Kino Luna in Warsaw and will be dedicated to Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, known worldwide as Joseph Conrad.
The idea behind the festival – exploring the interrelationship between cinema and literature – will this year take on a particularly special dimension, thanks to the extraordinary influence Conrad continues to exert on world cinema.
For the first time, on such a large scale, the festival will present the work of filmmakers from around the world who have adapted the prose of the author of Heart of Darkness or have referred, less directly, to Conrad’s themes and motifs. To a large extent, these films are not widely known in Poland – nor are their connections with Conrad. And yet, in terms of universality and influence on readers around the world, Conrad stands unrivalled among writers of Polish origin. Moreover, he is the only one among them to occupy a firmly established place in the international literary canon.
Over the course of the 10-day festival, audiences will have the opportunity to see many films that have never been distributed in Poland, as well as rediscover outstanding older and more recent works of world cinema. This time, however, we will look at them through the lens of Conrad’s work.
The audience will be guided through Conrad’s life and literature by film scholars and leading experts on his work, including Professor Agnieszka Adamowicz-Pośpiech, President of the Polish Conrad Society, and Professor Robert Hampson, President of The Joseph Conrad Society (UK). The festival will also welcome distinguished guests – filmmakers whose works are presented in the programme, as well as other contemporary artists.
The festival will also feature thematic panel discussions devoted to key issues surrounding Conrad’s work and the subsequent cinematic, literary and popular reception of his legacy. Together, we will also consider the continuing relevance of his heritage.
For the third consecutive year, FILMATURA will also organize, together with the Wajda Film Centre, workshops for young people devoted to the subject of literary film adaptations.
As in previous editions, the 3rd Literary Film Festival FILMATURA.CONRAD is organized by the Film Foundation What’s Your Story?
Detailed information about the Festival is available on the Foundation’s website, www.fundacjawys.pl, under the FILMATURA 2026 section, as well as on social media (Facebook, Instagram - @festiwal_filmatura).
Festival is co-financed by: Polish Film Institute, City of Warsaw and ZAiKS.
Festival Partners: Adam Mickiewicz Museum of Literature, Wajda Film Centre, Kino Luna, Business Centre Club, British Council, Association of Polish Writers, Polish Conrad Society, Documentary and Feature Film Studio in Warsaw, 35mm.online.
Media Patrons: Polish Chamber of Books, EKRANY magazine, Institute of Literary Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Polish Librarians’ Association, Polish Association of Book Publishers, Institute of English Studies at the University of Warsaw, Faculty of Polish Studies at the University of Warsaw, Radio Kampus, Booklips.pl.