SECRET TAPES OF SECURITY POLICE
Original language title: TAJNA TASMY SB

Country of production: Poland
Year: 2002
Language: Polish
35 mins.

In the late 60s, opposition to the Polish Communist regime grew. The secret service had more and more difficulty extinguishing protests. So they increased their surveillance of opposition leaders by filming them. Between 1966 and 1985, countless films were shot, most of which were destroyed with the collapse of the regime. This film is composed of extracts that were preserved in one way or another. Some of the technicians responsible for making the films discuss them in a voice-over, explaining the mundane details of how they documented the opposition. The footage depicts street protests, meetings, a hunger strike, a self-immolation, and protests against the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia. These are ghastly testimonies from a dark period in European history, a time when order was maintained with all possible means and treachery.

Director: Piotr Morawski
Cinematography: Andrzej Adamczak
Editing: Bogdan Saganowski
Sound: Bogdan Lmirek
Producer: Miroslaw Chojecki
Production Company: Media Kontakt
Source:
TVP S.A. Channel 1
Ul. J.P. Woronicza 17
00-999 Warsaw, Poland
Anna.Korzeniowska@wor.tvp.com.pl

Piotr Morawski is a veteran Polish documentarian. He holds a master's degree in Sociology from Warsaw University, and a degree in film directing from Silesian University. From 1984 through 1989, he worked for the K. Irzykowski Film Studio. Currently, he works mostly for Kalejdoskop Film Studio and Media Kontakt. He has made roughly twenty-five documentaries for Polish television, including BYTOM (1987), CARRIAGES (1988), AQUARIUM (1995), and TATO, I LOVE YOU (1999).

Wednesday, March 26
7pm
Facets Cinematheque
Screening with EYE SPY