The Girl in the Poster

Colour, 35mm
Poland, 2001, 30 min
Section: Documentary Films in Competition

Synopsis

A bio of the first female tractor driver in Poland, Magdalena Figura, whose image sitting on a tractor was plastered across Poland in 1949. The film combines old newsreel footage, bearing witness to the era of “socialist building” and to her numerous work records, with a narrative relating how this self-confident, socially emancipated woman is doing now. In her own mind there is no doubt about her past; she’s proud of every distinction and decoration. She can still drive a tractor brilliantly, although medical care has become a reality of her life. Her family considers her an odd duck, nevertheless her grandson fully accepts her. Even though today she seems something of an anachronism, her personality and lifestyle command respect. Out of this comes her slightly ironic, though mainly probing insight into her “socialist building” fate.

About the director

Ewa Pieta did a course in Polish studies at Warsaw university and IN screenwriting in Lodź. In 2001 she finished studies in film direction at the Silesian University in Katovice. The Girl in the Poster is her graduate film. Filmography: Jane Sweet Jane (Jane slit Jane, 1997), A Doggie (Piechu, 1998), The Girl in the Poster (Dziewczyna z plakatu, 2001).