Frag Out! Magazine

Probably, it would be hard to find freakier time for a movie about a modernization of the Polish Armed Forces. The tenders are in progress and government elections around the corner. But in fact there is a need because a society knows about a modernization literally nothing and this what is available in media makes a kind of mess in the head. This movie is neither a monography of an equipment, nor a collection of the promises from the times of the People's Republic of Poland (before 1989 for those who don't know). It is not a presentation of the relevant kinds of the armed forces, but tells about a few chosen aspects of a modernization at the current stage. If there is still a lack of something, so it is missed – somebody in a few years' time will make a subsequent movie and it will be possible to notice a qualitative leap which was made within a short period of time. I wish that this material would leave in the viewer a conviction that a modernization of our army is a well-considered program which consists of many mutually depended and, what is important, complementary elements. I do not assume this element individually in the movie, but look at the whole issue in terms of new possibilities which are obtained by the Polish Army. And I try to present them in a cooperation. The Kitchen A project took six weeks counting from a moment of concluding an agreement. One week of preparation, a week of visiting movie sets and providing arrangements with the units, two weeks for shots, and the next two for a postproduction. Everybody who is involved in the process of movie making knows what it means. 24 hours divided into minutes, a minimal margin for error at each stage. Therefore, an experience and a proven team are of a critical importance. In the army even a civil movie team must know its place, that is know what and in what manner can be made, when and with whom. A period of learning of the military reality is behind us. During a few years we verified various persons. This team consist of more than twenty specialists in many branches – you can't find in it a weak link. Once it happened that somebody discovered while setting a movie that he was very afraid of flying. Bad weather, a rate of work, sleepless nights and everyday travels form a movie set to another movie set with a distance within a range of hundreds kilometers screened out subsequent persons, really perfect in their professions. Now, I am aware with whom I may boldly enter such situations. A core of the team is determined – subsequent persons are accepted on the basis of recommendation of those who already know with what we would have dealings. More or less, because we have always tried to go to a next step and make something new. Lubliniec, Żagań, Sulechów, Łask, Drawsko Pomorskie, Siemirowice, Węgorzewo. Some of this places we have already known well. But still we were surprised greatly since in many of them army has behind it a period of learning a civil reality. A professional preparation, a precisely scheduled day, splendid briefings in which participated soldiers and a movie team during which we broke each fragment down into its individual elements. A serious approach and grave expectations. Especially there where we sailed in uncharted waters – air-to-air movie sessions. I have already cooperated with the JWK special forces unit and 7th Special Operations Squadron, but for the first time we have such complex, dramatized scenario and two helicopters at our disposal. Similarly, in Łask. To the last moments the fate of the first in history, movie, air-to-air batten session of the Polish F-16 were in the balance. It was managed thanks to a great involvement of the representatives of the Ministry of National Defense, General Command of Branches of Armed Forces, Air Forces and a well-known air photographer, Bartek Bera, who ensured a substantive support for the operators. In this subject matter we could not be supported by anyone from the movie industry since we make it as the first ones. MULTIMEDIA

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