People attending an event held in the square in front of the European Film Centre CAMERIMAGE building, 2022. License
British artist and director Steve McQueen has decided to skip the 32nd iteration of Poland’s Camerimage Film Festival following a contentious article written by the festival’s founder and CEO, Marek Żydowicz.
McQueen, who directed the WWII-era film Blitz, starring Saoirse Ronan and Harris Dickinson, told The Hollywood Reporter that, “having read Marek Zydowicz’s op-ed concerning female cinematographers, I have decided not to attend the opening night presentation of my film, Blitz, this weekend. Although he has issued an apology, I cannot get past what I consider deeply offensive words.
I have enormous respect for cinematographers of all genders, including women, and believe we have to do and demand better to make room for everyone at the table.”
The festival, focused on the celebration of cinematography, is set to begin this Saturday, the 16th, in the northwest city of Toruń, and although Blitz is still slated as the event’s opening night screening, Camerimage will no longer be receiving a visit from the Oscar-winning director.
The festival’s outstanding director award was also scheduled to be given to McQueen as part of the opening night ceremony, but it’s unknown whether he’ll still be lauded in absentia.
When asked about the situation, Żydowicz said, “It was with great sadness that I accepted Steve McQueen’s decision to withdraw from the festival. I apologize once more, and I would like to take this opportunity to sit down in an open forum and talk about how to move forward together in a more open and inclusive manner.
The festival is here to embrace each other as a community and to share in the appreciation of the images we cherish together as a community. Let’s have a meaningful discourse [...] so that we can begin to rebuild in a more equitable manner. Let us have a conversation and determine the steps that will make the festival, our industry, more open, unified, and representative of all voices.”
The article which spurred McQueen to back out from attendance was published in the latest issue of Cinematography World Magazine. In a response to a recent petition that the international union, Women in Cinematography, made for better support and inclusion from the Camerimage Festival, Żydowicz stated, “The film industry is undergoing rapid changes, affecting the cinematic image, its content, and aesthetics.
One of the most significant changes is the growing recognition of female cinematographers and directors. This evolution is crucial as it rectifies the obvious injustice present in societal development. However, it also raises a question: Can the pursuit of change exclude what is good? Can we sacrifice works and artists with outstanding artistic achievements solely to make room for mediocre film production?”
Camerimage Film Festival, 2019
Reactions to the argument were immediate, and institutions like The British Society of Cinematographers (BSC), The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC), The Canadian Society of Cinematographers (CSC), and The Society of Camera Operators and Women Cinematographers Network (representing Germany, Austria, and Switzerland) were all outspoken in their disapproval of the sentiments.
However, several other industry titans will still be present for the festival, including Cate Blanchett, who currently serves as the competition’s 2024 jury president, in addition to many Oscar front-running department heads, including: Jarin Blaschke, who worked on Nosferatu; Wicked’s Alice Brooks; The Brutalist’s Lol Crawley; Stéphane Fontaine, who worked on Conclave; and Emilia Perez’s Paul Guillaume, just to name a few.
