"Imagine" Courtesy of Zara.pl

Movie goers are once again in for a treat this autumn with the return of the renowned Warsaw Film Festival (WFF). Since starting out as a small- scale student event, WFF has developed into a globally renowned movie festival, becoming one of only 14 such events endorsed by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations.

The festival showcases the best of Polish, European and international cinema, with a mission to increase international awareness of Polish film and culture. “We still have a lot of catching up to do culturally speaking,” said Stefan Laudyn, director of the WFF. “During the wars Poland was completely cut off from culture. Now it is our chance to catch up with the rest of the world and that is something which is speeding right ahead.”

This year’s event, which promises to be the best yet, will be opened with a screening of Andrzej Jakimowski’s new film “Imagine.”

The film, which stars Alexandra Maria Lara (“Downfall” by Oliver Hirschbiegel, “Control” by Anton Corbijn) and Edward Hogg (“White Lightnin’ ” by Dominic Murphy,) tells the story of Ian, a new instructor at a well-known Lisbon clinic for the visually impaired.

“I wrote ‘Imagine’ after several months’ research into spatial orientation techniques used by the blind,” said Mr Jakimowski. “I find some of their methods poetic and absolutely cinematic at the same time,” he added.

All movies will be divided into different competition categories, such as best screenplay, director, and documentary. The winners will be chosen by a special jury.

For more information and full listings log on to wff.pl