ZAPASIEWICZ, ZBIGNIEW

(1934-)

Accomplished theatrical and film actor, best known for his screen performances inKrzysztof Zanussi's films. After completing the State Acting School in Warsaw (PWST) in 1956, Zapasiewicz acted in Warsaw theaters. Beginning in 1963, he started to appear in episodic roles in several films, includingJerzy Skolimowski'sThe Barrier(1966), in which he played a blind man. Zanussi's highly regardedtelevisiondrama,Next Door(1971), where he starred with another favorite actor of Zanussi,Maja Komorowska, proved to be Zapasiewicz's breakthrough film.Although he is a versatile actor, his screen persona became associated with the role of an academic professor (docent), the character he played inNext Door. He played such a character, the cynical Professor Szelestowski, in Zanussi'sCamouflage(1977), for which he received the Best Actor award at theFestival of Polish Films. The same award and thePolish Film Award"Eagle" were given to him recently for another role in Zanussi's filmLife as a Fatal Sexually Transmitted Disease(2000), where he played a terminally ill character, Tomasz Berg. Also acclaimed was his performance in Zanussi's bitter political satirePersona Non Grata(2005), where he starred as a Polish ambassador in Uruguay grieving over the sudden death of his wife.

Zapasiewicz also played several lead roles in films directed byEdward Żebrowski, such asDeliverance(1972) andThe Hospital of Transfiguration(1979). He is also known for his tour de force performance in the role of a disillusioned journalist in one of the seminal films of theCinema of Distrustperiod—Andrzej Wajda'sRough Treatment(1978). He also played supporting roles in Wajda's other films, for example, as ruthless factory owner Kessler inThe Promised Land(1975). Polish viewers appreciated Zapasiewicz's role as an opera singer inJanusz Zaorski'sBaritone(1985), as well as his portrayal of Marshall Józef Piłsudski inAndrzej Trzos-Rastawiecki's television seriesMarshall Piłsudski(eight one-hour episodes, 2001). International audiences watched him in episodic roles inKrzysztof Kieslowski's films: as head of the examining board inA Short Film about Killing(1988) and as a Communist apparatchik inBlind Chance(1981/1987).