05-11-2009

PRODUCTION: Poland's Pawlikowski comes home to shoot

By Katarzyna Grynienko

    UK based Polish filmmaker Paweł Pawlikowski is returning to Poland to shoot Sister of Mercy in his native language.

    Filming is planned for the summer of 2010. The movie will evolve around the moral dilemma of a young nun sought after by a Secret Service agent for co-operation under the communist regime in 1968 Poland. He reveals her Jewish descent and makes her question her own identity, while their relationship gets more complicated. Polish screenwriters Cezary Harasimowicz is working with Pawlikowski on the script.

    Sister of Mercy is a Polish-British co-production with Piotr Dzięcioł and his company Opus Film (www.opusfilm.com) representing the Polish side. According to the Polish Film Institute's (PISF, www.pisf.pl) the budget is 6.6 million PLN (€1.5 million) and PISF's will finance 3 million PLN. The shoot will probably take place in Wrocław, where the story is set. The cast and crew have not been announced.

    Pawlikowski received BAFTA Awards for Last Resort and My Summer of Love starring Emily Blunt. His future projects include an English language feature titled Epic and the Georgian-Russian-language project about Joseph Stalin, Kamo, both still in development.