31/01/2006

The success of novel adaptations, such as Ogniem i mieczem ('by fire and swords') by Jerzy Hoffman (€25.1M benefits and 7 million tickets) and Pan Tadeusz (Pan Tadeusz – 'when Napoleon crossed the Niemen') by Andrzej Wajda (€20M benefits and 6 million tickets), convinced Polish banks (especially Kredyt Bank, PKO bp) to invest in film production. However, this attempt did not last after the commercial failure of the most expensive movie in the history of Polish cinema, Quo Vadis by Jerzy Kawalerowicz, an adaptation of Henryk Sienkiewicz' novel. This feature earned 17.2 million euros and sold 4.3 million tickets but the production budget was of €14.8M. The project Quo Vadis temporarily attracted national companies such as Poczta Polska (Polish post), who, since then, never invested again in films, and Telekomunikacja Polska (telecommunication) who only invested once after that (in Artur Więcek's Anioł w Krakowie - 'the angel of Cracow' in 2002).