People on the Bridge (Ludzie na moście)

An experimental short film based on a poem People on the Bridge (Ludzie na moście) written by Nobel Prize winner Wisława Szymborska directed and narrated by Beata Pozniak. Visuals of Beata performing are intermingled with images of a 19th century Japanese woodblock print entitled People on a Bridge by Hiroshige Utagawa which provided the original inspiration for the poem. Six figures are caught in the middle of an old wooden bridge during a sudden rainstorm. As the people run to seek shelter from the storm the drama of this moment in time is captured in the poetry as both frozen and fluid. Szymborska’s insight is that these travelers go on “endlessly” in spite of the momentary nature of the artwork. The resonance of this Japanese masterpiece was such that it inspired Vincent Van Gogh to paint a copy in oil for himself. Pozniak plays with the symbolism of time and the bridge as a powerful connection between places, historical periods and cultures.