A Generation

A Generation (Pokolenie) is Andrzej Wajda’s 1955 feature debut, following Stach, a young proletarian in wartime Warsaw who joins the left-wing People’s Guard after witnessing the Nazis kill his friend. His involvement in the partisan resistance changes him as a person, a lover, and an antifascist. Set in 1942, the film combines Italian neorealist and urban-documentary influences with Expressionist imagery and a modernist soundscape, creating a tense and atmospheric portrait of life under occupation.

The film was the first professional project for most of its cast and crew, and Wajda avoided using actors with prewar filmmaking experience. Its production also includes an early example of the “squib” special effect, created here with a condom filled with fake blood and dynamite. The screening is part of the Harvard Film Archive’s series Once There Was History ... Andrzej Wajda at 100.

When: Saturday, November 21, 2026

Showtime: 9:15 pm

Venue: Harvard Film Archive

Director: Andrzej Wajda

Cast: Tadeusz Łomnicki, Urszula Modrzyńska, and Tadeusz Janczar

Year: 1955

Country: Poland

Format: 16mm, black and white

Run time: 87 minutes

Language: Polish and German with English subtitles

Print source: Jessica Rosner

Tickets: Price not available

Series: Once There Was History ... Andrzej Wajda at 100