Polish director is dead

omotolani

October 10, 2016 1:12 PM

Polish Filmmakers' Association has confirmed the death of the Oscar-winning film director.

Andrzej Wajda

Polish film director and actor, Andrzej Wajda, 90, is dead.

The actor reportedly died of lung failure. Poland's former prime minister and the current head of the European Council, Donald Tusk, tweeted: "We all stem from Wajda. We looked at Poland and at ourselves through him. And we understood better. Now it will be more difficult."

Film director and head of the Polish Filmmakers' Association Jacek Bromski speaking on Wajda's death told Polish broadcaster TVN24: "He was one of the greatest Polish artists, one of the best-known in the world. Poland was his passion.

"For us, for the community he was a pillar of strength, everybody gathered around him. He was always present in the life of the film-making community, he was a mentor, a paragon."

Many of his films, including "Kanal", "Man of Marble", "Man of Iron" and "Katyn", were inspired by Poland's turbulent wartime and communist history.

In 2000, Wajda was awarded an honorary Oscar for his contribution to world cinema and has made more than 40 feature films in a career spanning 60 years.

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