Mike Newell. Photo: Off Plus Camera
“I started to see his films in 1960, when I went to university,” he said of the maker of such classics as Ashes and Diamonds (1958) and Man of Marble (1977), in an interview with Polish Radio correspondent Nick Hodge.
“Like a mosquito he bit me then and gave me a nasty dose of malaria, and it's been in my blood ever since,” he added.
“And I have loved his films ever since.”
Andrzej Wajda. Photo: PAP/Stanislaw Rozpedzik
88-year-old Wajda, who is leading a masterclass today at the festival, delighted fans on Wednesday by ensconcing himself on the throne from HBO's cult series Game of Thrones (pictured left).
Newell, whose diverse output has seen him directing Al Pacino and Johnny Depp in mafia movie Donnie Brasco (1997), as well as Daniel Radcliffe in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), is among the jurors for the main competition of the festival.
Twelve emerging international talents (only directorial debuts or second features are eligible) are going head to head for the Krakow Film Award, one of the biggest prizes on the international festival circuit, with the winner set to walk away with a cheque for 100,000 dollars.
“I'm impressed with the quality of films,” Newell enthused.
“I've been taken places I didn't expect, and that's of course what the festival is all about.”
To hear the entire interview with Mike Newell, in which the British director ponders what's essential for aspiring directors today, and compares the realms of television and film, click on the link above.
Newell is currently working towards bringing an adaptation of John Wyndham's sci-fi novel The Day of the Triffids to the the big screen, as well as a new version of Sir John Masefield's classic children's tale The Box of Delights.
The 7th Off Plus Camera Festival runs until Sunday 11 May. (nh)