Silesia

Castle in Będzin. Fot. Polska Organizacja Turystyczna

The Film Fund
In reply to the initiative of the Director of the Polish Film Institute, in 2008 the regional authorities of Silesia granted funds for the support of audiovisual production. These funds are in the hands of Silesia-Film, responsible for the organization of a competition for the support of film production, known as the Silesian Film Fund.

TwTwelve film projects have received financing from the Silesian Film Fund to date. 

Contact details   
Instytucja Filmowa Silesia-Film
40-008 Katowice, ul. Górnicza 5
tel. +48 32 206 88 61, fax 32 259 83 88
info@silesiafilm.com.pl
www.silesiafilm.com.pl

Budget
In 2008 the Silesian Film Fund had a budget of 1 million PLN (260,000 EUR).

Entry Conditions
The Silesian Film Fund provides funding for the production of feature, documentary and animated films. Financing is available to projects related to the Silesian region through their subject matter, location or creators. As co-producer of selected projects, Silesia-Film can cover up to 50% of the budget. All projects must comply with the prerequisite that at least 10% of the budget is covered by funds other than public funding. One print or otherwise agreed copy of the project must be submitted to Silesia-Film and the regional premiere must take place in a venue selected by Silesia-Film in Katowice.

Apart from the prerequisite of relating to the region, other criteria include artistic, humanist and ethical values of the project, such as structuring of the text, complexity of characters, quality of dialogue, innovativeness, originality and contribution to European cultural diversity. Other key factors include the filmography of the director and producer (artistic and financial results), the financial situation, expected economic results and expected percentage of the budget to be spent in the region.

Applications are assessed within 90 days of the deadline. The next edition of the Silesian Film Fund competition will be announced in the first quarter of 2011.

Silesia
Silesia is located in southern Poland, along the Vistula, Odra and Warta rivers. It borders on the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Because of its picturesque landscapes, the region is an interesting destination for filmmakers. The region is also home to many industrial sites, such as ironworks, coalmines, mining villages and housing estates, as well as a number of castles and post-industrial sites.

Landscape
Silesia is Poland’s most industrialized region and one of the foremost such regions in Europe. Yet it remains highly diverse in terms of landscape, with an abundance of mountains, highlands and lowlands. This diversity enriches the local flora and fauna, even in densely populated areas. The region is home to 60 nature preserves, established to protect various forests, waterways and wetlands. Key natural attractions of the regions include the forest-covered hills of Beskid and picturesque landscapes of Jura Krakowsko-Częstochowska, known for its rock formations, deep valleys and caves.

Landscape Parks
Beskid Mały Landscape Park
Silesian Beskid Landscape Park
Cistersian Landscape Park
Forests of the Upper Liswarta River Landscape Park
Orlich Gniazd (Eagle Nest) Landscape Park
Stawki Landscape Park
Załęcze Landscape Park
Żywiec Landscape Park

Cities and Sites
Silesia has 71 cities, the largest of which are Katowice, Częstochowa, Gliwice, Sosnowiec, Bielsko-Biała, Dąbrowa Górnicza, Zabrze and Bytom. Katowice is located in the heart of Poland’s largest agglomeration. Its landscape is mostly postindustrial, with working and closed industrial plants, as well as old mining villages and residential areas. The largest such areas are the districts of Nikiszowiec in Katowice, Kaufhaus in Ruda Śląska and Biskupice in Zabrze.
The region is also home to a number of castles and palaces, used over the years mainly for defense or representative purposes. One of the best-preserved of these is the castle complex in Pszczyna, built in neo-Renaissance style. The palace museum still holds about 80% of the original fin-de-siecle interior artifacts.
Smaller, yet similarly interesting castles form the Eagle Nest Trail – 25 castles located along a line of 163 km. Many of them are in ruins. The most picturesque include the remains of the castle at Ogrodzieniec near Zawiercie, as well as castles in Olsztyn, Bobolice and Mirów.

Tarnowskie Góry is home to two silver and lead mines, where the main attractions include a 600-metre-long boat ride through the mine corridors.

Zabrze is the site of a number of coal mining relics, including the Guido underground ethnographic museum, the Queen Luiza ethnographic museum and the Coal Mining Museum.

The region is also home to one of Poland’s oldest narrow gauge railways. Its 23-kilometre-long track has been in use for over 150 years.

 

Interior of the Castle of Sułkowski Dukes in Bielsko-Biała. Fot. Jan Mehlich / Wikipedia

Museums and Heritage Parks

Art Museum

Silesian Museum in Katowice
40-005 Katowice, al. W. Korfantego 3
tel. +48 32 258 56 61-3, +48 32 259 98 04, fax +48 32 259 98 04
www.muzeumslaskie.pl
dyrekcja@muzeumslaskie.pl

Historical Museums

The Sułkowski Dukes’ Castle
43-300 Bielsko-Biała, ul. Wzgórze 16
tel. +48 33 822 06 56, fax +48 33 811 10 35
info@muzeum.bielsko.pl
www.muzeum.bielsko.pl

The City of Czestochowa Museum
Częstochowa, al. Najświętszej Maryi Panny 45a
tel. +48 34 360 56 31, fax +48 34 360 54 55
muzeum@muzeumczestochowa.pl
www.muzeumczestochowa.pl

Museum in Gliwice
44-100 Gliwice, ul. Dolnych Wałów 8a
tel. +48 32 231 08 54, tel./fax +48 32 230 73 66
info@muzeum.gliwice.pl
www.muzeum.gliwice.pl

Cieszyn Silesia Museum
43-400 Cieszyn, ul. T. Regera 6
tel./fax +48 33 851 29 32, +48 33 851 29 33
www.muzeumcieszyn.pl 

mc@muzeum-cieszyn.ox.pl

The Piastowski Castle in Gliwice
44-100 Gliwice, ul. Pod Murami 2
tel. +48 32 231 44 94, tel./fax +48 32 230 73 66
www.muzeum.gliwice.pl/zamek_piastowski 

info@muzeum.gliwice.pl

The Castle Museum in Pszczyna
43-200 Pszczyna, ul. Brama Wybrańców 1 
tel. +48 32 210 30 37, fax +48 32 449 03 33
kancelaria@zamek-pszczyna.pl
www.zamek-pszczyna.pl

Ethnographic Museums and Heritage Parks

Upper Silesia Ethnographic Park
41-500 Chorzów, ul. Parkowa 25
tel. +48 32 241 07 18, tel./fax +48 32 241 55 01
skansen@poczta.onet.pl, skansen@chorzow-online.pl
www.skansen.chorzow.pl

Stara Zagroda Ethnographic Museum
43-450 Ustroń, ul. Ogrodowa 1
tel. +48 33 854 31 08

Other

Centre for Polish Set Design
40-032 Katowice, pl. Sejmu Śląskiego 2
tel./fax +48 32 251 57 14
www.muzeumslaskie.pl 

scenografia@poczta.onet.pl

 

The Queen Luiza Mining Museum
41-800 Zabrze, ul. Wolności 410
tel./fax +48 32 370 11 27
www.luiza.zabrze.pl

krolowa.luiza@muzeumgornictwa.pl 

The Guido Coal Mine in Zabrze
41-800 Zabrze, ul. 3 Maja 93
tel./fax +48 32 271 40 77, +48 32 271 48 59
biuro@kopalniaguido.pl
www.kopalniaguido.pl

Archives

State Archive in Katowice
40-145 Katowice, ul. Józefowska 104
tel. +48 32 208 78 01, fax +48 32 208 78 05
kancelaria@katowice.ap.gov.pl
www.katowice.ap.gov.pl

Local Authorities and Organizations

Silesian Voivodship Marshal Office
40-037 Katowice, ul. Ligonia 46
tel. +48 32 207 88 88
kancelaria@silesia-region.pl
www.silesia-region.pl

Euroregion Śląsk Cieszyński
43-400 Cieszyn, ul. Rynek 18
tel. +48 33 857 87 20, fax +48 33 857 87 21
sekretariat@euregio-teschinensis.org
www.euroregion.olza.pl

„Region Beskidy” Association
43-300 Bielsko-Biała, ul. Piastowska 40
tel./fax: +48 33 813 63 33, +48 33 813 63 25
biuro@euroregion-beskidy.pl
www.euroregion-beskidy.pl

Euroregion Silesia
47-400 Racibórz, ul. Batorego 7
tel. +48 32 415 64 94, fax +48 32 415 30 95
info@euroregion-silesia.pl 
www.euroregion-silesia.pl