R.I.P. Julek Kedzierski
Our film business has many unique characters who actually sustain the corners of the business that make it an especially unique sort of “industry”. Julek Kedzierski was one of those people, known by a few who loved him and by a few others who did not. For me, part of the charm of the business is the wide array of individuals you meet who are busy in ways we do not always perceive but who maintain special niches for others as they create their own paths.
Julek Kedzierski, born and educated in England studied film directing in Poland from 1967–71, and worked in production from 1971 until 1980. He worked in the international distribution sector in sales and acquisitions for 36 years. His specialty when we met in 1988 was the acquisition and distribution of rights in Germany and the Nordic Area to obscure or old properties and he was an expert in retrieving underlying materials for them. His favorite activity which he began in 2010 when he headed the International Co-production Market at the International Film Festival of Mannheim Heidelberg was bringing together novice producers with experienced minority producers in the art house sector on a worldwide basis. He collaborated with Cypriot producers on Smuggling Hendrix and Menopause (2016–2017) and with many other start-up producers whose projects merited his efforts.
Speaking of the small territories with minimal film industries, he said “As so often in developing feature film industries, there are two or three major producers who work well, and fledging producers who need the right kind of support….Through ‘Mannheim Meeting Place’ we helped [the Lithuanian producer] Lukas Trimonis gain an international co-producer who was key to the project Miracle’s success.” Julek explained his role to the audiovisual works copyright association Avaka in this way.
I know his friends with miss him and I am proud to say I am among them!
We will always remember you with great fondness. Requiescat in pace Julek!
