Polish art-house helmer Andrzej Zulawski dies at 75February 18, 2016 - 14:44 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Polish art-house film director Andrzej Zulawski died on Wednesday, February 17 at the age of 75 after a long battle with cancer, his family said, according to AFP. "My father died in the early hours of Wednesday, at a hospital in Poland. He had no chance of survival," his son and fellow director Xawery Zulawski told AFP. "He had projects in the works but the choice had been made: death. He didn't fight it, he didn't want to fight it." Xawery had posted on Facebook on Tuesday that Zulawski was "terminally ill with cancer". The actor, writer and director of several French films had just released his last film Cosmos in 2015, which won him the best director award at the Locarno film festival in Switzerland. Zulawski was "a very original artist, sometimes controversial but always true to himself", Polish Filmmakers Association president Jacek Bromski told Polish broadcaster Polsat. Born in occupied Poland in 1940, Zulawski left for Paris at the age of five with his parents and later studied at the Sorbonne. His films had a good dose of nihilism, savage eroticism and hopelessness, which he attributed in a 2004 Paris Match interview to being born during World War II. "Going into the war my family numbered 40 people, afterwards there were three... My younger sister died of hunger," he told the magazine. "As a kid I saw things that I never should have seen. It's undoubtedly what gave me the sense that every day is a miracle." Zulawski is survived by three children, including a son with French actress Sophie Marceau. They separated in 2001. "It's a huge loss for Polish and world cinema," Polish film critic Janusz Wroblewski told AFP. "His films are considered cinema classics, but at the time they were avant-garde," he said of the director of "The Third Part of the Night" (1971) and "The Devil" (1972). "He was provocative, breaking many Polish stereotypes and introducing eroticism in his films." Photo: Ralph Gatti / AFP Top stories The creative crew of the Public TV had chosen 13-year-old Malena as a participant of this year's contest. She called on others to also suspend their accounts over the companies’ failure to tackle hate speech. Penderecki was known for his film scores, including for William Friedkin’s “The Exorcist”, Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining”. The festival made the news public on March 19, saying that “several options are considered in order to preserve its running” Partner news | Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Ucom equips four bus stops in Ijevan with free Wi-Fi Ucom now provides free Wi-Fi coverage in smart bus stops in four communities of Ijevan. Armenia, Russia discuss life extension of Metsamor nuclear plant Issues regarding the extension of life of the 2nd power unit of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant were discussed in Yerevan. Armenians stage more campaigns against territorial concessions to Azerbaijan Protesters blocked more roads across Armenia on Friday, April 26 in continuing attempts to scuttle territorial concessions to Azerbaijan. |