She is one of the leading figures of Polish film, but has lived in the USA for many years, where she has directed episodes of prestigious TV series such as "The Wire", "The Affair" and "House of Cards". In her feature films, she has often tackled Europe's dark history, such as the Holocaust.
A few years ago, she returned to her home country to make "Green Border", a deeply critical film about how her old homeland handled the refugee crisis, how refugees were pushed back and forth in no man's land, and how they were deliberately allowed to drown.
In the rest of Europe, the refugee crisis began in 2015, but in Poland it didn't start until 2021. I saw how the government legalized violence against refugees and used it for domestic political purposes. I immediately felt that this was something I had to tell, says Agnieszka Holland.
Hateful Propaganda
The previous conservative government used the refugee situation in the run-up to last year's election. The atmosphere was tense and Holland was forced to make her film in secret, or at least in secret locations. The film was shot in 24 days. The propaganda against Holland and the project was hateful.
They went so hard that I think they overdid it. For many Poles, it became a wake-up call: "what kind of country have we become". I was already well-known in Poland, now they saw how I was attacked and it became an awakening.
When the film had its world premiere at the 2023 film festival in Venice, the attacks intensified to hurricane force. The Minister of Justice, Zbigniew Ziobro, likened the film to Nazi propaganda, and President Andrzej Duda referenced a slogan from World War II: "only pigs sit in cinemas".
"Must Talk About Migration"
But the premiere went ahead and in Poland, the film became a box office hit. With 800,000 viewers, it outdid both "The Little Mermaid" and "John Wick 4". A month after the premiere, the Poles went to the polls and the right-wing government lost.
Maybe my film had something to do with it. Those who saw it were moved and realized that we must talk about human values. We must talk more about migration. It's the biggest problem of the future. Environmental destruction, wars, millions and millions of people will be on the move, says Agnieszka Holland.
Age: 75 years.
Lives: In New York.
Family: A daughter.
Occupation: Director.
Previous films and TV series: "Liberation", "To Kill a Priest", "The Secret Garden", "Total Eclipse", "The Wire", "The Killing", "Treme", "Rosemary's Baby", "The Affair", "Villebråd", "House of Cards", "Mr Jones".
Currently with: "Green Border", which has its Swedish cinema premiere on 20/9 (the film was awarded seven prizes at the 2023 film festival in Venice).
