A lonely man limps down the road. A truck drives up to him. Several armed men jump out of it. They capture the limping man and transport him to the forest. The only witnesses of the scene are people from a nearby village. Since 2021, situations like these are commonplace on the Polish-Belarusian border of the EU, which is the scene of an ongoing refugee crisis. An animated documentary whose creator happens to live in a town by the border.

Directed by: Szymon Ruczyński

Written by: Szymon Ruczyński

Produced by: Agata Golańska

Cinematography: Szymon Ruczyński

Editing: Szymon Ruczyński

Production Design: Szymon Ruczyński

Animation: Szymon Ruczyński

Sound: Szymon Kucharski

Original Title: W LESIE SĄ LUDZIE

Film Production Country: Poland

Website: -

Social Media: -

Statement of the Director/s
In the autumn of 2021, in the forest surrounding my home village a large-scale military operation was launched. Still ongoing, it is aimed against people from distant countries who are crossing our border in search of a safer life in the European Union. In our vast woodlands, they face brutal pushbacks, which leave them stranded in the forest, suffering from hunger, thirst, cold, illnesses, and violence at the hands of the neighbouring regime. At first, as an inhabitant of this area, I was one of the relatively few civilians who were able to observe and react to the cold-hearted abuse happening around us. The further from the scene of the crisis, the more people are either unaware, indifferent, or supportive of the brutal solutions. As an artist, I felt the need to transform what I witnessed into a form that could expose the cruel absurdity and pointlessness of this situation. I chose the medium of an animated documentary, which allowed me to present the problem in a universal way without the overwhelming weight of large-scale politics. The very basics that are so often forgotten are simple: There are people at our borders. They are being made to suffer in the name of our "safety". And they are still there. Will we continue to treat them like this?

Biography of the Director/s
Szymon Ruczyński was born in Hajnówka, Poland, in 2000. He is currently a student of the Animated Film and Special Effects department at the Polish National Film School in Łódź. He grew up in Białowieża, a village in the center of the ancient Białowieża Forest, the source of inspiration for his award-winning films. Since 2021 Szymon has been participating in bringing humanitarian aid to the refugees hiding in the forest. He uses mixed animation techniques to tell stories about socially relevant problems he witnesses.

Filmography of the Director/s
2020 - Reason
2021 - The Wildwood Diptych
2023 - There Are People in the Forest

Production Company:
The Polish National Film, Television and Theatre School in Lodz
Agata Golańska
Phone: +48667150124
Website: www.filmschool.lodz.pl

World Sales:
INDEKS Film Studio
Marcin Malatyński
Phone: +48501639646
Website: www.studioindeks.pl