From the very beginning, i.e. since 2016, the NECS association (European Network for Cinema and Media Studies), which brings together scientists, archivists and people professionally related to the media (including employees of the Institute of Contemporary Culture of the University of Lodz), has been the event's partner. During the courses at universities, students analyse and then evaluate five films nominated for European University Film Awards. At the beginning of December, one of the students takes part in the final proceedings that take place in Hamburg, where representatives of all universities award the main prize.
"Anatomie d’une chute" directed by Justine Triet, appreciated by the student jury for "an attempt to deconstruct the formula of a courtroom drama and a masterful illustration of how relative the category of truth can be" is the winner of the last edition. This is the first time a university award has been granted to a title that also received the most important distinction in the European Film Award. It should be emphasised that the university prize was awarded to the work that to the largest extent goes beyond the framework of national cinema. This year's repertoire also included "How to Have Sex" by Molly Manning Walker, "Zielona granica" by Agnieszka Holland, "Das Lehrerzimmer" by Ilker Çatak and "Domaḱinstvo za početnici" by Goran Stołewski – works that are more deeply rooted in the political and social problems and cultural identity of a given region.
Since 2018, the EUFA programme has been a part of the World Cinema in the 21st century course, which I have the pleasure of conducting for the third-year students of film studies (previously it was the Contemporary European Cinema course, coordinated by Dr Michał Pabiś-Orzeszyna). So far, the University of Lodz was represented by Zuzanna Woźniak, Kevin Kołeczek, Adam Teodorczyk, Jakub Zawodniak, Jędrzej Kocjan, Tomasz Poborca, Filip Grzędowski and – this year – by Joanna Kosińska-Wajcht.
Text: Dr Adam Cybulski, Department of Film and Audio-Visual Media, University of Lodz
Edit: Communications and PR Centre, University of Lodz