In New Delhi, Polish curator Artur Zaborski celebrates cinema as humanity’s shared emotional language.
Artur Zaborski, Curator of the European Union Film Festival
When Artur Zaborski talks about cinema, he speaks with the conviction of a philosopher and the passion of a cinephile. The Polish cultural journalist, film curator, and Vice-Rector for International Cooperation at the Warsaw Film School has spent more than a decade exploring how stories unite audiences across borders.
Having interviewed global icons such as Nicole Kidman, George Clooney, and Tilda Swinton, Zaborski brings to his work a rare blend of intellectual depth and instinctive emotional understanding.
As Artistic Director of Script Fiesta, Programme Director of the Summer Film Academy, and programmer for the Tofifest International Film Festival, he has long been at the crossroads of art and storytelling. His most recent curation for the European Union Film Festival in India captures his guiding belief—that cinema transcends geography.
“It’s very important to remind people outside of the European Union how diverse the EU actually is,” Zaborski explains. “We often forget that each of the 27 countries has its own identity, culture, language, and history. Through cinema, we can show how unique each nation is—and at the same time, how similar we all are in our emotions.”
For Zaborski, curating is not merely about selecting good films—it’s about building bridges. He sees film festivals as reminders of both variety and universality. “If we watch a family drama from Italy, we cry the same tears in Warsaw, in Rome, or in Mumbai,” he says. “Emotions are identical everywhere. Cinema destroys boundaries—it’s bigger than language or culture.”
His selection for this year’s festival reflected that idea, balancing humor, melancholy, and realism. The opening film, Memory Lane, a road movie about an aging couple, was chosen precisely because it defied stereotypes of European cinema as dark or depressing.
“I wanted to fight that stereotype,” Zaborski says. “Europeans can laugh too. We can talk about serious subjects in unserious ways. Memory Lane tackles something universal—dementia—but in a humorous, life-affirming way. You laugh and cry together, because life is both sad and funny.”
The film also spoke to another value he champions: respect for maturity. “Europe often struggles with the cult of youth,” he notes. “This film reminds us that senior people have a lot to share—their experience, their outlook, their resilience. It’s a social statement as much as an artistic one.”
Zaborski’s cinematic map of Europe stretches across landscapes and languages. “When I first came to India,” he recalls, “I was amazed that each city looked so different, just like Europe’s regions. The Baltic coast is nothing like the Mediterranean, and films allow us to see these differences. Cinema doesn’t only tell stories—it shows how places feel.”
The festival’s program reflected that geographical and emotional range: 28 feature-length films from the 27 EU member states plus Ukraine, screening across venues such as the India Habitat Centre, Instituto Cervantes, and the Hungarian Cultural Centre.
“We usually show two films per day during weekdays and more on weekends,” Zaborski explains. “We even have screenings for young audiences, like the Swedish Torpedo, an inspiring sports biopic that shows how perseverance can overcome all odds.”
Zaborski emphasizes that festivals are not only about watching films but also about sparking collaborations. “We have side events like a screenwriting workshop with Marine De Ville, the writer of Memory Lane,” he says. “Filmmakers from Finland, Poland, and India are meeting, exchanging ideas, and discussing co-productions. That’s how future collaborations begin.”
He recalls his student days in Kraków, when Indian crews shot big-budget films in Poland. “It was fascinating to see how our worlds connected,” he says. “Festivals give European guests a chance to fall in love with India, to find partners, to collaborate. Cinema becomes a diplomatic language.”
The program also featured cross-cultural voices like Sandeep Kumar, an Indian director based in Vienna whose film Happy tells the story of an Indian immigrant in Austria. “It’s easy for an Austrian filmmaker to imagine that story,” Zaborski remarks, “but it’s more authentic when told by someone who has lived it. That’s the real perspective.”
As Vice-Rector at the Warsaw Film School, Zaborski straddles two worlds—the classical cinema of the big screen and the evolving world of short-form storytelling. “Young filmmakers arrive thinking they already know how to shoot because they use their phones all the time,” he laughs. “But through our courses, they discover that cinematography is far more complex. That discovery gives me hope that cinema will survive.”
At the same time, he welcomes the evolution of new formats. “I don’t mind 60-second reels,” he admits. “If they’re creative and well-made, that’s still storytelling. The key is to do it professionally—learn from experienced cinematographers and screenwriters. Whether it’s a feature or a reel, creativity should drive it.”
What he treasures most, however, is the shared experience of watching films in a darkened theatre. “Watching a film together, feeling that collective emotion—it’s one of the most beautiful ways to experience art,” Zaborski says softly. “I wish the younger generation never loses that magic.”
In his 2023 Polish Film Institute Award acceptance speech, Zaborski dedicated the honor to “all who believe in cinema as a universal language.” It’s a belief he continues to live by. From programming festivals to mentoring young storytellers, his mission remains constant: to celebrate diversity and unity through the moving image.
“Cinema,” he says, “reminds us that no matter where we come from, our emotions connect us. That’s what makes it truly global.”
During his time in New Delhi, Zaborski also delivered a lecture at the prestigious Anwar Jamal Kidwai Mass Communication Research Centre (AJKMCRC), Jamia Millia Islamia. The lecture is presented by the Polish Institute New Delhi in collaboration with the European Union (EU) delegation in India and the EUFF.
