On the evening of 9 October 2016, Andrzej Wajda, one of the greatest directors in the history of cinema and a founding father of Polish cinematography, passed away at age 90. In 2000, he was presented with a Honorary Oscar. He also won the Palme d’Or, the Golden Lion and the Golden Bear awards as well as the Felix European Film Award and the Japanese Kyoto Prize. In 1989, he received the title of Doctor Honoris Causa of the Jagiellonian University.
Andrzej Wajda was born on 6 March 1926 in Suwałki, Poland. During the years 1946–1950, he studied art at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. Later, he studied to become a film director in Łódź. He made his first baby steps as a director by the side of Aleksander Ford during the filming of Five Boys from Barska Street. Since then, he has directed several dozen films. some of the most famous are Ashes and Diamonds (1958), The Ashes (1965), The Promised Land (1974), Man of Marble (1977), The Maids of Wilko (1979), Man of Iron (1981), Pan Tadeusz (1999), Katyń (2007) and Wałęsa. Man of Hope (2012).
Aside from receiving numerous cinematographic awards, he was also presented with various Polish awards (including the most important one, the Order of the White Eagle) and international ones from countries such as Bulgaria, Hungary, France, Italy, and Japan.
His last film, Afterimage (2016) was selected as the Polish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards. It tells the story of a free-thinking artist, oppressed by the Soviet-installed Communist regime for his refusal to adhere to socialist realism. The protagonist of the film is played by Bogusław Linda.
In 1989, Andrzej Wajda received the title of Doctor Honoris Causa of the Jagiellonian University. In May 2016, he also received the University’s golden Plus Ratio Quam Vis medal. ‘Andrzej Wajda is a master filmmaker, who over the years shaped the Polish perception of not only beauty and truth, but also the darker sides of both our past and present. He is the jewel in the crown of Polish art, and his legacy is a testimony to his firm belief that knowledge is more important than power, a principle which he shares with the Jagiellonian University’, said Prof. Wojciech Nowak, JU Rector, during the ceremony.
