Of Animals and Men

Poland2019documentary56'Konkurs dokumentalny (2019)Konkurs polski (2019)

Recently, this story has been presented in the feature film “The Zookeeper's Wife” starring Jessica Chastain. Now, we can learn more about its real-life protagonists – Antonina and Jan Żabińskis. Before WWII, they ran the Warsaw zoo which, during the war, gave shelter to many people, mostly Jews. This extraordinary tale of courage and great passion is made of archival materials, staged fragments and testimonies of witnesses and survivors. There is also an underlying story, a slightly surreal take on the common fate of people and animals.

directed by
Łukasz Czajka, portret reżysera
Łukasz Czajka

Director, game designer and TV reporter. He graduated from the Faculty of Political Sciences and Latin American Studies at the University of Warsaw, as well as the documentary program Dok Pro at the Wajda School. "Of Animals and Men" is his film debut.

cinematography
Kacper Czubak
script
Łukasz Czajka
music
Marcin Masecki
sound
Marcin Lenarczyk
editing
Jakub Piątek
production
Anna Wereda (Autograf Karol Wożbiński)
Photo
Kadr z filmu Of Animals and Men