Weronika Mliczewska
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Weronika Mliczewska is a Polish filmmaker, anthropologist and author. She is best known for writing, directing and producing the feature-length documentary Child of Dust, which won the International Competition and Polish Competition at the 65th Krakow Film Festival.
Early life and education
Mliczewska was born in Katowice, Poland, in 1986. She studied Cultural Studies at the Warsaw University, and anthropology and directing at Goldsmiths, University of London. She further honed her skills in photography and filmmaking at UCLA extensions in Los Angeles.[1][2]
Career
Mliczewska, trained in anthropology, set out in her early twenties on a solo journey through Central America, where she lived among Mayan communities. She later chronicled this experience in her nonfiction book "Na początku jest koniec. Na szlakach duchowości Majów" (In the Beginning There Is the End. On the Spiritual Trails of the Maya), which captures her anthropological exploration of the contemporary Maya world.[2][3][4]
In 2016, she directed the short documentary Speechless in Japan, a participatory portrait of a cross-dressing Japanese man living on the margins of society. The film, which premiered at the Asian American International Film Festival, explored themes of solitude, identity, and societal judgment.[5]
Mliczewska's medium-length directorial debut was the documentary Long Way, co‑financed by the Polish Film Institute, which premiered at the Krakow Film Festival in 2017.[6] The film was inspired by a personal journey that began when Mliczewska photographed a mysterious woman from India by the Jordan River in Israel. Years later, Mliczewska embarked on a trip to India to find her.[7]
In 2025, Mliczewska served as writer, director, and producer on her feature documentary, Child of Dust. The film follows Sang Thanh Ngô-a Vietnam War Amerasian—on a journey to reunite with his biological father. The project took eight years to complete and involved filming in Vietnam and the United States.[8][9]. It had its world premiere at the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, where it received a Special Mention,[10] and won the International Competition and Polish Competition at the 65th Krakow Film Festival.
Filmography
Year | Film | Director | Producer | Writer | Note |
Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | The Circle | Yes | Yes | Yes | Short | [11] |
2016 | Speechless in Japan | Yes | Yes | Yes | Short | [12] |
2017 | Długa droga (English: Long Way) | Yes | Yes | Yes | [13] | |
2020 | Catalonian Dream | Yes | Yes | Yes | Short | |
2025 | Child of Dust | Yes | Yes | Yes | [14] |
References
- ^ "POLISH DOCS: Weronika Mliczewska - international promotion of Polish documentary films". Polish Docs.
- ^ a b Insight, W. (8 March 2018). "She is risking her life by traveling alone off the beaten path". W Insight.
- ^ "Weronika Mliczewska". www.podroznik-radzyn.pl (in Polish).
- ^ "Interview with Weronika Mliczewska, Director of SPEECHLESS IN JAPAN – Asian CineVision". www.asiancinevision.org.
- ^ "Interview with Weronika Mliczewska, Director of SPEECHLESS IN JAPAN – Asian CineVision". www.asiancinevision.org. Retrieved 11 August 2025.
- ^ "Long Way - Film at KFF". Krakow Film Festival.
- ^ ""Long Way". O wyprawie ponad to, co w głowie - Czwórka". www.polskieradio.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 26 July 2025.
- ^ Macnab, Geoffrey (8 March 2025). "Thessaloniki Int'l Doc Fest: Child Of Dust by Weronika Mliczewska". Business Doc Europe.
- ^ "Eye For Film: 'It's one of those films where you can't be impartial'". www.eyeforfilm.co.uk.
- ^ "POLISH DOCS: CHILD OF DUST RECEIVES SPECIAL MENTION, "LIFT LADY" WINS AUDIENCE AWARD IN THESSALONIKI - international promotion of Polish documentary films". Polish Docs. 17 March 2025.
- ^ Kaul, Sarthak (18 March 2021). "The Cycle [Weronika Mliczewska, USA , 2015]". FRAME LIGHT.
- ^ "Speechless in Japan | DOKweb". dokweb.net.
- ^ "POLISH DOCS: LONG WAY - promocja polskich filmów dokumentalnych za granicą". Polish Docs (in Polish).
- ^ "EXCLUSIVE: Trailer for Thessaloniki Documentary competition entry Child of Dust". Cineuropa - the best of european cinema. 6 March 2025.
External links