For actors, all the world’s a stage and they are merely players with their exits and entrances, and many parts to fill with their craft and passion for words, gestures, and body language. For screenwriters, pen is mightier than the sword, and there is nothing, nothing more powerful in the world of men than the boundless imagination of an inspired individual. For directors, what is important is the process of combining the talents and artistic potential of all of the members of their cast and crew in order to create a coherent vision – they resemble conductors of a large symphony orchestra before and during an important concert, making sure that each instrument will play in unison with the rest, creating something that is far bigger that the sum of its parts.

That each of these professions require an utmost dedication, hard work, self-awareness and the desire to improve oneself endlessly should be obvious to everyone who ever wanted to be a true artist. However, there is a small number of film professionals who are able to be successful in all three lines of work. One of them is Kenneth Branagh, this year’s laureate of two Camerimage special awards. The distinguished artist will come to Bydgoszcz and personally accept Krzysztof Kieślowski Award, a distinction we present to versatile actors and actresses who contribute to the art of filmmaking, named as a tribute to one of the festival's early patrons and a remarkable filmmaker attuned to the beauty of the human condition. Furthermore, Kenneth Branagh will accept Camerimage Cinematographer – Director Duo Award together with his friend and long-time collaborator Haris Zambarloukos.

Both filmmakers will also meet the audience on Camerimage Opening Night and present their latest collaboration, a riveting and stylish murder mystery Murder on the Orient Express, based on the world-renowned Agatha Christie novel of the same name.

Kenneth Branagh is famously considered as one of the best Shakespearean actors of the last century, ranked among such eminent performers as Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud, and Alec Guinness. And though it was his 1989’s directorial feature debut adaptation of Henry V that introduced the young and already established artist to the international audiences, catapulting him to film stardom, Kenneth Branagh has a lot more to his name. He is also the first artist ever to be nominated to Academy Award^® in five different categories: Best Director (Henry V), Best Actor in a Leading Role (Henry V), Best Short Film, Live Action (Swan Song), Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published (Hamlet), Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role (My Week with Marylin).

As an actor, he had proven his craftsmanship and versatility by working in different genres, among them war epics (Bryan Singer’s Valkyrie, Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk), comedies (Richard Curtis’s The Boat That Rocked, Simon Curtis’s My Week with Marilyn), historical dramas (Phillip Noyce’s Rabbit-Proof Fence, Joseph Sargent’s Warm Springs), and fantasy films (Barry Sonnenfeld’s Wild Wild West, Chris Columbus’s Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets). As a director, he never rested on his laurels and with each subsequent project tried something new: from his beautifully cinematic takes on Shakespeare’s plays (Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, Hamlet, Love’s Labour’s Lost, As You Like It) to neo-noir (Dead Again), gothic horror (Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein), independent comedy (In the Bleak Midwinter), suspenseful drama (Sleuth), superhero epic (Thor), action thriller (Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit), fairy tale fantasy (Cinderella), and now a classic ‘whodunnit’ crime story (Murder on the Orient Express).

Needless to say, the projects in which Kenneth Branagh stars or works on as a director/screenwriter are not only interesting and memorable, but also a wonder to look at. That is because he was always keenly aware of the role of the image in film storytelling, and as a director always tried to work with great cinematographers who he knew could enhance his already strong artistic vision: Kenneth MacMillan on Henry V, Alex Thomson on Hamlet, Roger Pratt on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and others. But it was a meeting on the set of 2006’s Sleuth with Haris Zambarloukos that resulted in the most fruitful director-cinematographer collaboration in his career. Back then, Haris Zambarloukos was an emerging talent of the world of cinematography, being named as one of Variety's “10 Cinematographers to Watch” but having only a few feature film credits.

Together they infused Sleuth’s intellectual and emotional duel between an aging writer and a struggling actor with a number of memorable images that made all the difference. From that moment on, Kenneth Branagh and Haris Zambarloukos worked on all of the former’s directorial efforts, making them universal and enormously cinematic experiences. On Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Thor they created a unique vision of mythical realm of Asgard and soaked the fight between gods and men with riveting visuals. In Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit they made sure the titular character’s clash with international terrorism looked thrilling and palpable for the audiences. Their sumptuous and stunning live-action version of Cinderella sparked with colour and delight, making each viewer sigh with regret that it was only a film. And now, their latest collaboration, Murder on the Orient Express, promises to be a detective story for the ages, a fun ride side by side with the most talented actors on the planet. Soon, Kenneth Branagh and Haris Zambarloukos will meet again on the set of a family adventure Artemis Fowl.

Apart from cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos, the creative team behind Kenneth Branagh's Murder on the Orient Express includes BAFTA Film Award winning production designer Jim Clay (Children of Men, Love Actually), Academy Award^® winning costume designer Alexandra Byrne (Elizabeth: The Golden Age, The Avengers), BAFTA Film Award nominated editor Mick Audsley (Dangerous Liaisons, Twelve Monkeys), and two-time Academy Award^® nominated composer Patrick Doyle (Hamlet, Sense and Sensibility).

The premiere Camerimage screening will be held on 11^th November in Opera Nova's Main Hall in Bydgoszcz, and will be a part of Camerimage 2017 Opening Gala, to which you need an invitation. However, subject to availability of free seats, we will admit holders of festival passes. Murder on the Orient Express will have its Polish theatrical release on 24^th November 2017. Polish distributor: Imperial - CinePix Sp. z o. o.