BE POLAR FILM FESTIVAL ONLINE
From today till 31st December and free of charge. Some movies ara available within a 3-hour evening slot, other, mostly a few decades old documentaries, for the whole duration of the festival.
SYNDROM ZIMOWNIKOW (THE ANTARCTIC SYNDROME)
Recommended. The 3rd Polish Antarctic Expedition. About 4 decades ago. A different reality: lots of alcohol, a sex doll, killing, skinning and eating a seal - I've never been there but seriously doubt it'd be possible nowadays. On the other hand, the psychological observation, connected with a few experiments, was a milestone in group psychology and the results of the research were quickly grabbed by the Congress Library and NASA became immediately interested due to its space program. The group wintering over comprised mostly of men. I guess that's why the first deprivation they suffered was sex. Next came apathy. Then irritability, people's idiosyncrasies started triggering conflicts. In the middle of the winter it was the worst. Difficulty in concentration meant that, in spite of ample time in hand, performance decreased. The lack of stimuli led to aggression. On the other hand, I saw them skating on a little lake near the station - must be the same frozen lake I saw in photos from the station just a few days ago. It's also comforting to know that Puchalski knew he would most likely pass away in Antarctica and he wanted to die there, in his dream land. The fact, the penguins fell silent around him when he passed is some food for thought. Altogether a fascinating insight into an extraordinary place.
I have to say it's the most important documentary I've seen during the pandemic. Now I finally understand why everyone in Poland seems to have such a short fuse - it's the lockdown-induced lack of stimuli that causes aggression in people. On the other hand, I understand why so many activities are scheduled into the Antarctic station rota nowadays.
The screening went smoothly and was loud enough to watch from a distance. Only captions weren't very legible then, but you could easily make out who was who.
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