MK2 and Protagonist Pictures join forces for Pawel Pawlikowski’s Film4-backed feature Cold War

Pawel Pawlikowski
Pawel Pawlikowski

MK2 Films and Protagonist Pictures have teamed up to handle worldwide sales on COLD WAR, the new film from Academy award-winning writer/director Pawel Pawlikowski which has begun production in Poland. The film will be introduced to buyers at EFM in Berlin, and is due for completion in 2018.

Pawlikowski’s most recent film Ida was a global success, packing out arthouses and winning the Oscar and BAFTA for best foreign language film as well as three European Film Awards including best European film, director and screenplay. His other key credits include My Summer Of Love (2004) and Last Resort (2000).

COLD WAR is a passionate love story between two people of different backgrounds and temperaments, who are fatally mismatched and yet fatefully condemned to each other. Set against the background of the Cold War in the 1950s in Poland, Berlin, Yugoslavia and Paris, the film depicts an impossible love story in impossible times.

The film is a Polish/French/UK co-production, and is written by Pawlikowski in both Polish and French languages. The director’s long time partners Tanya Seghatchian (My Summer of Love) of Apocalypso Pictures and Ewa Puszcyńska (Ida) from Piotr Dzięciol’s Opus Film (Poland) are producing, along with France’s MK Productions.

The film is being financed by Film4, Polish Film Institute, MK Productions, Opus Film, CNC – Aide aux Cinémas du Monde, Arte France Cinéma, the BFI with National Lottery funding, and Protagonist Pictures.

COLD WAR stars Tomasz Kot and Joanna Kulig, alongside Agata Kulesza from Ida.