PIECZKA, FRANCISZEK

(1928-)

One of the best Polish actors, known for a variety of roles in several classic Polish films. Pieczka, whose career spans more than fifty years, appeared in approximately 130 Polish films and twenty-fourtelevisionplays. After graduating from acting school in Warsaw (PWST) in 1954, Pieczka appeared in episodic roles in several Polish films beginning withAndrzej Wajda'sA Generation(1955, not credited) and playing regular soldiers and plebeian characters in films such asJerzy Kawalerowicz'sMother Joan of the Angels(1961) andWojciech Has'sThe Saragossa Manuscript(1965).In the second part of the 1960s, Pieczka became one of the best-known Polish actors thanks to his role as Gustlik in the enormously popular television war seriesFour Tankmen and a Dog(1966-1967), directed by Konrad Nałęcki. He also received critical acclaim for his role inHenryk Kluba's stylized filmThe Sun Rises Once a Day(1967). InWitold Leszczynski's celebrated classic,The Life of Matthew(1968), he starred as an oversensitive protagonist who develops an unusual closeness to nature. Pieczka played strong supporting roles in several canonical Polish films of the 1970s, such asKazimierz Kutz'sThe Pearl in the Crown(1972), Wajda'sThe Wedding(1973) andThe Promised Land(1975), andJerzy Hoffman'sThe Deluge(1974). In 1976 Pieczka also played the lead role as a well-meaning manager of a huge industrial plant inKrzysztof Kieslowski'sThe Scar(Blizna, 1976), for which he received the Best Actor award at theFestival of Polish Films.

Arguably Pieczka's best performance in the 1980s was his role as a Jewish innkeeper in Kawalerowicz'sAusteria(1983). Also in the 1980s, he appeared in strong supporting roles in films directed by, among others, Leszczyński (Konopielka, 1981, andAxiliad, 1985) andJanusz Zaorski(TheMother of Kings, 1982/1987). Pieczka also belongs to the small group ofJan Jakub Kolski's favorite actors; Pieczka appeared in the majority of Kolski's films in supporting and leading roles. For example, he played the lead character inThe Burial of a Potato(1991) andJohnnie the Aquarius(1993)—for the latter he received the Best Actor award at the Festival of Polish Films. In recent years, Pieczka has continued his collaboration with Kolski, appeared in Kawalerowicz's epicadaptationofHenryk Sienkiewicz'sQuo Vadis(2001), and starred in Leszczynski'sRequiem(2001), which was made in the spirit ofThe Life of Matthew.