Zygmunt Zintel

A collection of intimate television short stories based on well-known literary works.

Stach is a wayward teen living in squalor on the outskirts of Nazi-occupied Warsaw. Guided by an avuncular Communist organizer, he is introduced to the underground resistance—and to the beautiful Dorota. Soon he is engaged in dangerous efforts to fight oppression and indignity, maturing as he assumes responsibility for others’ lives.

A Polish priest arrives at a convent hoping to save the Mother Superior who is supposedly possessed by eight demons.

Two strangers, Jerzy and Marta, accidentally end up holding tickets for the same sleeping chamber on an overnight train to the Baltic Sea coast. Also on board is Marta's spurned lover, who will not leave her alone. When the police enter the train in search of a murderer on the lam, rumors fly and everything seems to point toward one of the main characters as the culprit.

Story of four people in Sopot in 1933, mysteriously brought together to an old villa to reenact a murder ritual that took place 36 years earlier.

Poland in the 50s, 20th century The process of collectivization of agriculture is under way. The wealthy Slumdog farmer is one of the last individual farmers who have not joined the cooperative and are trying to grow their own land. But it is very difficult - the unemployed mercenaries who paid for them run to cooperatives (where they have better conditions), the environment or the local authorities do not accept him as a kulak. Struggling with the problem of how to make a 40-hectare farm last, he remains alone in the face of a loss of land that he cannot cultivate.

A biology professor, Adam enters a hospital for observation. He is a loner and a serious-minded man, who dislikes any display of emotions. He spends three months in the hospital while being tested. After observing patients and hospital routines around him from a distance, he learns that he will need a kidney transplant. Meanwhile his personal and professional life is falling apart: he refuses his wife's offer to donate the kidney for him; the scientific problem he was working on has been solved elsewhere. In the end Adam cracks under the prolonged pressure, waiting for the sound of an ambulance bringing a moribund patient whose kidney may be used for the transplant.

A Pole incorporated into the Wehrmacht deserts, hiding in a coal mine ...

Rumsza, the elderly railwayman, leading a sedate life with his wife, misses his only remaining son (two older boys were killed in the war). Joziuk finally returns from the military in the first scene but with the pregnant Zosia, while Rumsza expected him to marry Celinka, the daughter of Krywka, his only friend and neighbour. The hero will not accept the new situation; he throws his son and Zosia out of his house. Celinka is distressed but she still harbours hope for Joziuk. The birth of the child changes the situation: Rumsza accepts his son's relationship but Celinka decides to leave.

Diver Antoni Barnat is falsely accused of causing an accident underwater that almost led to his fellow diver's death. Interestingly enough, they are both in love with the same girl, Teresa.

Children of the Leśniewski family decide to help their mother in daily chores so she can have more time for herself.

A day in the life of an alcoholic. With the help of his girlfriend Krysia, Kuba attempts to regain control of his life.

Teenaged Beata, disgusted with hypocrisy around her, runs away from home.

A prosecutor takes up a post in a small town where he has to deal with corruption and murder.

Disguised as an Italian medic, Dolas finds himself on a ship evacuating wounded Axis soldiers to Italy. He leaves the ship disguised as a Nazi soldier, but is found out, declared a deserter and sent to the Eastern Front. However, on the flight to Russia, he is able to escape with a parachute, and finds himself back in Poland, now occupied by Nazis.

When a delivery of coffins foreshadows a harsh winter, residents of a retirement home escape their confines and rediscover the world outside.

A young museum worker sets out to find a treasure hidden in a small town.

Two psychiatrists attempt to save a suicidal man.

Ewa Bonecka, a young student about to start school in a new place finds herself without a place to sleep after she is declined a room in a women-only hotel. Helped by a pleasant policeman, Piotr, she tries to find a lodging in the strange town full of thieves and petty troublemakers.

Anatol Kowalski is an old man who works in a bank and loves his old-fashioned hat. One day the hat gets lost and Anatol decides to buy a new one.

A stranger shows up in an American town, promising a reward for the person who once helped him out of trouble.

On the night of August 31, 1939, Dolas, from a platoon reinforcing a train station on the German border, falls asleep in a train car and unknowingly crosses into Germany. The moment he shoots a German, who he thinks is a saboteur, the German invasion of Poland begins, and Dolas is convinced it was his fault. He is taken to Stalag POW camp, the first destination in his odyssey around Europe.

Set in the time of Napoleon wars, shows how the wars swept over the unfortunate Polish country at the beginning of the XIX-th century. Story revolves around the Polish legion under command of General Dabrowski, who then fought on Napoleon's side with the hopes of Poland's revival.

After the war, the community of mountaineers is eager to start their own sawmill. When the communist authorities come to take over the sawmill, a rebellion starts.

A bitter story about a bizarre folk sculptor.

In this WWII drama, Russian soldiers take a break at a scenic farm in Poland, and the unit is able to escape the horrors of war during their brief respite. A Polish farm girl and a Russian officer feel a mutual and unspoken attraction towards each other.

Imperialist spies try to disrupt and stop production in a large steelworks.

A man has been found dead after having been hurled from a train. As security agents, police and a medical examiner piece together his identity, three accounts emerge: one set during World War II, one in the immediate aftermath of the war, and one in contemporary Poland.

Three separate short stories about young athletes who lose their chances of success. Young swimmer - because of unhappy love. Boxer because of a fight with hooligans, for which the judges will disqualify him. But the cyclist must decide for himself what is more important for him: victory or friendship.

A family saga of Barbara Ostrzeńska-Niechcic and Bogumił Niechcic against the backdrop of the January Uprising of 1863 and World War I. The film is a rather straightforward and faithful adaptation of a novel by Maria Dabrowska with the same title. The plot is woven around the changing fortunes of a noble (upper-class) Niechcic family in the pre-WWI Poland. There are two main crossing threads: a social history one and an existential one.

A bus crashes and its passengers find themeselves in the afterlife, which they find has the not only the same set of rules as Earth, but also the same bureaucratic chaos.

Two fairies, Terencja and Felicja are in posession of the Lucky Rain Boots, which they intend to give to the most deserving person in the city of Kraków. However, they consistently fall into the wrong hands, creating a multitude of absurd and comedic situations.

Set in the Middle Ages the film tells the story of a wonder child, the little sculptor Wawrzek, who goes to work for a great master, Wit Stwosz. The story culminates in the unveiling of Stwosz's greatest masterpiece, the Altar of St. Mary's Church in Cracow.

The action takes place in the second half of the 19th century in a small Californian town in the Wild West. Hans, a German émigré, opens a shop on one of the streets. To his annoyance, his fellow countryman, young and beautiful Lora, sets up a shop on the opposite side. There is fierce competition. Lora decides to take Hans to court. However, unfamiliar with German, the judge mistakenly marries them.

A young hairstylist leaves her husband and joins a group of working women.

An extraordinarily stylized tale of a prizefighter who ducks a fight to romance a beautiful blonde.

Set in a small Polish town just after the war, the story of an unruly teenager who constantly taunts the old priest. One day the youth has a horrible accident, which the villagers call divine punishment.

Two stories showcasing the problems children face while growing up.

Three short stories depicting the adventures of athletes from various disciplines. Reserve goalkeeper Antoni gets a chance to play in a match as a substitute for his sick teammate. Hanka and Piotr, although they are in love with each other, only meet at competitions. Adam is the first to arrive in the town where the finish line of a cycling race is located. The residents celebrate his victory.

One night in 1950 a passenger train runs over a man, who turns out to be the veteran train engineer Władysław Orzechowski, know for his old ways and stern demeanor. As the inquiry panel tries to deduce why would a man like Orzechowski jump in front of a moving train several of the people involved in the case are interrogated, each telling their own version of the story. Can the panel arrive at the truth in a world where workers unite, inferior coal is a badge of honor, and the old order is suspect?

A 10-year old boy becomes a king after the death of his father and tries to bring reforms to the country, with varying results

Nikodem Dyzma is a poor dancer who comes to Warsaw to find a job. The problem is that nobody wants to hire him. One day he finds an invitation to the party with very important people and decides to attend. A small accident at the party makes him the hero of the night and becomes the beginning of his career.

Two-part biopic about General Karol Świerczewski, living embodiment of the party line, and the group of party members from his hometown fighting the fascist forces towards the socialist state of affairs.

Absurd gag comedy about a grotesque pursuit of a "snow man" allegedly imported to Poland. A box with a shipment from India, which was supposed to contain a yeti, turned out to be empty. The desperate professor tries to find it. He even gets into prison, from which, however, he escapes handcuffed with the thief. Meanwhile, the "snow man" begins to be considered the perpetrator of more and more crimes. Eventually, everything becomes clear. In the telegram notifying of the shipment, a word was twisted and hence the whole misunderstanding.

Wacław Orzeszko is unlucky soldier, who one day decides to desert his platoon and hide out in a castle, where he meets a Red Army soldier Marusia. They discover that a German platoon is also hiding in a castle and together they must stop the Nazi soldiers from reuniting with the main army.

It seems that nothing can ruin Henryk’s (Wieńczysław Gliński) happy life. He’s a respected lawyer with a loving son and wife. One day, he receives a letter from the prosecutor’s office. He’s accused of collaborating with the Gestapo. It’s an echo of his past under occupation.

Three stories describing the life of the inhabitants of Warsaw, each set in a different time period.

Three separate stories depicting the tense everyday life during occupation, as seen through the eyes of children. In “On the Road,” the two main protagonists are lost in the September’s strife: a young boy, and a soldier transporting the valueless documents of his broken unit. In “Letter from the Concentration Camp” the story’s protagonists are young boys who help their mother during the hardships of the occupation. Their treasure is an officer uniform belonging their father who is being held in a prisoner of war camp. In “Blood Drop,” the Germans find a set of typical Aryan characteristics in this story’s protagonist – a Jewish girl, hiding in an orphanage.

The Home Army's battles against the communist authorities in the Żywiec region.

A carmelite monk travels through 17th century Poland and experiences various mishaps along the way.

In Trzebiatów, a small town, there is an unusual bustle. A crowd of residents has gathered in the market square to welcome their beloved MO sergeant, Władysław Lichniak. The sergeant has just returned from his written high school final exam. The residents, who adore him, make sure he has the right conditions to study. They have limited their alcohol consumption and maintain order in the town themselves. Unfortunately, a fight breaks out and disturbs the sergeant's peace.

A reclusive lighthouse worker accepts the offer to swap jobs with a police inspector for a while, just to help him catch Teston, the so-called criminal of criminals.

The two twins, Jacek and Placek, start out as cruel and lazy boys whose main interest is eating, eating anything, including chalk and a sponge in school. One day they have the idea of stealing the moon; after all, it is made of gold.

The first of four theatrically released episode compilations of the TV series, featuring episodes 1 and 2. “The plot follows the adventures of the heroic crew of the Soviet tank “Rudy” and their loyal dog Szarik as they fight across the Eastern Front in World War II, blending thrilling battles with moments of friendship, compassion, and youthful innocence.

A story of a middle-aged Jew methodically preparing himself to be shipped off to a concentration camp. The main character, Jacob Rosenberg, is a former industrial counselor, who is forced to work as a street cleaner. He knows what the fate is holding for him in the future, nevertheless he takes it with and implacable calmness.

Adventures of a two little girls kidnapped from their families.

A Scotland Yard officer investigates the mysterious disappearance of a series of corpses. Based on the novel by Stanisław Lem.

A young public servant receives a house as a wedding gift, but upon arriving he finds only the doors, a military barrack and a tank hidden underground.

Shot in the beautiful scenery of the Tatra Mountains, this sensational drama revolves around a thwarted smuggling of art pieces across the Polish-Czechoslovak border to the West. Highlander Jasiek used to be a smuggler, now he is a soldier of the Border Protection Forces, serving in his homeland, in the Tatra Mountains. Under the influence of the educational work of his superiors, as well as his love for Halka, he becomes a righteous citizen. He contributes to preventing the smuggling of valuable works of art abroad organized by a Polish aristocrat and carried out by a gang.

WWII. Zyga, one of the Resistance soldiers in Kraków is arrested by Gestapo. Soon later the Germans make a number of other arrests and Zyga is accused of being an informer.