FIPRESCI and the Warsaw Film Festival Continue Their Longstanding Partnership for the Future of Film Criticism

in 41st Warsaw International Film Festival

by Tommaso Tocci

in 41st Warsaw International Film Festival

by Amber Wilkinson

As Warsaw opens its doors to the 41st edition of its International Film Festival, much about the event feels fresh and revamped, starting at the top with a new programming director in Bartek Pulcyn. The Polish capital’s longstanding relationship with FIPRESCI remains a constant, however – for decades the festival has worked closely with FIPRESCI in fostering new generations of film critics and journalists, with a particular focus on up-and-coming writers from Central and Eastern European regions flocking to the city to attend the Warsaw Critics Project workshop.

2025 marks a new beginning for Warsaw just as FIPRESCI continues the celebrations for its 100 years of collaboration between film critics worldwide. To mark this milestone, Tommaso Tocci and Amber Wilkinson, who organize the WCP workshop every October, have been collecting memories and impressions from former participants through the years, looking back at snapshots of the career paths of many young colleagues who share the experience of Warsaw.

It all starts with being on the ground in the film festival world and experimenting with a variety of roles and positions, as Tobiasz Dunin (a Polish participant in 2024) remarks in his bit of fundamental advice to colleagues who may be interested in following in his path: “Go to film festivals – not only for workshops, but as volunteers as well – and try to meet people!”

For critics specifically, Călin Boto reminds us of a key aspect: “Don’t rush – it’s rarely now or never,” he reassures prospective young writers trying to figure out their path in this industry. Boto, a participant from the 2018 edition of the Warsaw Critics Project, is now a film curator for festivals including the Bucharest International Experimental Film Festival, Berlin Critics’ Week and Trieste Film Festival, in addition to teaching at the UNATC Film University in Bucharest. From the workshop he learned “rhythm” most of all: “I was very young and knew little about journalism, speed, deadlines. Writing daily during the festival was certainly an icebreaker.”

As the world of cinema and festival intertwine with developments in the broader political and cultural landscape, Yulia Kuzischina, also from the 2018 edition, found her life and career affected: “I was born in Ukraine, lived between Russia and Ukraine during the workshop, and now I ended up in Armenia. I took a lot from the experience, and before the war I was working very actively in the film industry. Now I still write, but only occasionally.”

Meanwhile, Marija Lukarevska, in Warsaw in 2023, is a journalist and columnist serving as deputy editor-in-chief for a regional lifestyle magazine in her native Skopje, North Macedonia. She highlights the other crucial component of FIPRESCI’s workshop, which sees participants gearing up for jury duty and preparing their path as future members of the association on the festival circuit. “The moment that left the biggest impression was working together as a team to decide which film should get the Young FIPRESCI award. Debating, writing the jury statement and making compromises to reach a final agreement with fellow critics from different countries was a memorable experience for me.”

Known for its practical approach to the day-to-day job of film journalism, the workshop also zeroes in on craft. From Novi Sad in Serbia, Nikola Jovic, who attended in 2021, lists some of the skills he acquired during his time in Warsaw: “Taking notes during screenings, structuring an article, developing an attention to time sensitivity, and not counting on the official info about the film,” a testament to a critic’s self-reliance in a world not devoid of hardship. “Film criticism,” continues Jovic, “can at times be an uphill battle and an expensive hobby; however, with the right mindset, it can be a rewarding experience. Recognizing when to draw a line in the sand and when it’s worth pushing through that uphill battle is a skill in itself. It requires trial and error, which can’t be avoided, but knowing to expect the lows can make them easier to accept once they happen.”

And yet we don’t have to go at it alone, which might be the longest lasting lesson from decades of collaboration and professional synergy of the event, as well as FIPRESCI’s own rich history. In the words of Georgian participant Levan Tskhovrebadze, who after attending in 2019 now divides his time between criticism and filmmaking, “the Warsaw Critics Project was the very first critics’ workshop I attended. It gave me so much: I learned the craft, I got international recognition as a film critic, gained a clearer understanding of how major festivals work. Above all I met amazing people, some of whom became good friends.”

Amber Wilkinson
Tommaso Tocci
©FIPRESCI 2025