GUESTS 2011
Feliks Falk
Feliks Falk is a film and theatre director, writer of film scripts, stage plays, television plays, and radio dramas; he is also a painter and a graphic artist. Falk graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw and from the National Film School in Łódz, Poland where he later served as lecturer. In his career he worked as layout artist for a main stream magazine, as film producer and was a co-owner of the Fokus Film Studio. Mr. Falk is a prominent representative and creator of the 1970s wave in Polish film known as cinema of moral anxiety. In 2011, in recognition of his outstanding achievements in the film arts, president of Poland presented Feliks Falk with the prestigious award the of Order of Polonia Restituta.
Rafal Olbinski
In 1981 he emigrated from Poland to the US, where he soon established himself as a prominent painter, illustrator and designer. A master of visual language, he moves with ease from painting to typography to opera stage design. His inventive and highly evocative imagery soon appeared in publications such as Atlantic Monthly, New York Times, New Yorker, Newsweek, and Time magazine. Besides producing work for periodicals, Olbinski has created numerous poster illustrations for opera productions, live theater, and music festivals around the world. He has garnered more than 150 awards for such work, including Gold and Silver Medals from the Art Directors Club of New York, Society of Illustrators awards in both New York and Los Angeles, and similar honors in England, France, and Italy. Among his many poster awards are the International Oscar for the World’s Most Memorable Poster Prix Savignac 1994 in Paris, a Creative Review Award for the Best of British Illustration in London, and a design that in 1995 was chosen as the official New York City Capital of the World Poster. In addition to producing a considerable portfolio of illustration and graphic art, Olbinski has held more than 30 one-man shows during the last decade in the United State, Belgium, Chile, Germany, Japan, and Poland. His paintings are included in the collections of the National Arts Club, the Smithsonian Institution, the U.S. Library of Congress, and the Suntory museum in Osaka, Japan, as well as in numerous private and corporate art collections worldwide. Mr. Olbinski has been teaching at the prestigious School of Visual Arts in New York since 1985. Quotes about Olbinski: “Rafal Olbinski’s art is an extraordinary testament to integrity, spirit and adventure
Ludek Drizhal
An award‐winning composer, conductor and music producer, Ludek Drizhal has received international acclaim for his wide‐ranging scores and arrangements. Soon after moving to the United States from his native Prague, Drizhal started performing as a concert violinist with a number of symphony orchestras, working with the likes of Marvin Hamlisch, Bobby McFerrin and Lynn Harrell. His virtuosic violin performances, as well as his piano and guitar accompaniments can be heard in numerous recordings and in works of other composers. He has conducted for and recorded with many orchestras including the Slovak Radio Symphony, The Golden Hornet Project of the Austin Symphony, USC Symphony Orchestra and the Hungarian National Symphony. Today, he proudly holds the position of Guest Music Conductor with his beloved Czech National Symphony Orchestra. Drizhal has worked with highly acclaimed Polish writer/director Jacek Bromski. Drizhal’s score for Bromski’s “U Pana Boga za miedzą” (God’s LittleVillage) was the No. 1 selling soundtrack in Poland in the summer of 2009 and he recently completed the score for Bromski’s new high-profile thriller “Uwiklanie” (Entanglement) that opened in Europe in July of 2011 .
Spencer Gibb, Aaron Frescas, Kasi Painter
Austin based musicians cooperating on multipole projects with Ludek Drizhal.
Andrzej Chyra
He is a theatrical and film actor. Chyra studied at the National Academy of Theatre in Warsaw at the Faculty of Acting and the Faculty of Direction. As an actor he became recognizable thanks to a role in Krzysztof Krauze's film “The Debt”, where he played the demonic Gerard blackmailing two young businessmen. He is a popular and sought after actor with a large range successful in film and on the theater stage in Poland and France.
Magda Marcela
Graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Her first love is acting, but writing comes as a close second. “The Miracle Mile Girls” is Magda’s debut as a screenwriter. Magda grew up in Austin, Texas.
