What’s on after the screenings? Check out the Asian Academy and festival club schedules!
So you’ve just watched a great film and now you have a few questions? Or perhaps you’d like to discuss what lies between the frames – the cultural nuances, hidden meanings and stories that don’t end with the closing credits? We’ve got just the thing! Five Flavours isn’t just about screenings: it’s also a space for meetings, discussions and events that will help you immerse yourself even more deeply in Asian cultures. Check out the Asian Academy programme and drop by Turnus Cafe, our festival club!
Admission to all Asian Academy events and to Turnus Cafe is free.
We’ve made sure there’s something special waiting for you every day. The Asian Academy is a space for meeting others and exploring film contexts together. We’ll be looking at cinema as part of culture, history and social change, and discussing identity, spirituality and themes that aren’t always confined to what we see on screen. There’ll be debates, discussions and opportunities to compare your own interpretations with those of others. You don’t need to have all the answers – all you need is curiosity and a willingness to join the conversation!
And if, after a screening, you’re still craving more of the festival experience, head over to Turnus Cafe. At our festival club, you can unwind with a tea-tasting experience, learn to play mahjong, test your knowledge in a pub quiz, or get carried away by the retro rhythms of city pop straight from Japanese vinyl records. There’ll also be space for meet-ups, casual chats and simply spending time together. After all, the 20th anniversary of Five Flavours is best celebrated together – not just in the cinema auditorium. See you at Turnus!
Asian Academy programme
Admission to all Asian Academy events is free.
Pełna Sala Film Club after the screening of “Peking Opera Blues”
Thursday 12 November, 22:15, Muranów
Host: Julia Palmowska (Pełna Sala), guest: Marcin Krasnowolski (Five Flavours)
A discussion as part of the now-legendary Pełna Sala Film Club, this time focusing on what may be the most daring film in our Tsui Hark retrospective: “Peking Opera Blues”. Join the conversation, share your thoughts or simply listen and discover how the master craftsman constructed this intricate story, played with motifs drawn directly from Chinese opera and blended action cinema with a melodramatic imagination.
Debate: Tender Currents. How Does the Female Perspective in Chinese Cinema Break Social Taboos and Reshape the Image of China in the West? (after the screening of “It’s OK”)
Saturday 14 November, 12:45, Kino Muranów
Host: Lucyna Szczykutowicz (Five Flavours), guests: Maja Korbecka, Natalia Chudzyńska
For decades, modern China took pride in the slogan that women “hold up half the sky”. Today, as the state increasingly promotes a return to traditional gender roles in response to the demographic crisis, Chinese women filmmakers are bringing quiet revolutions to the screen with ever greater boldness, challenging social expectations along the way. During this debate, we’ll consider whether female intimacy and desire can be portrayed in China without shame, and how these universal stories confront a reality in which inconvenient problems are swept under the carpet.
Debate: How Does Cinema Draw Closer to Spirituality? (after the screening of “Becoming Human”)
Saturday 14 November, 20:25, Kinomuzeum
Host: Barbara Szczekała (EKRANy), guests: Olga Drenda, Łukasz Mańkowski, Anna Maria Piskorska
Can a film become a space for meditation, an experience of transcendence or a way of searching for meaning beyond traditional religion? We’ll talk about how cinema explores faith, rituals and experiences that push us to our limits, but also about the pitfalls of contemporary spirituality: the commercialisation of mindfulness, spiritual consumerism and the desire for ready-made answers. Can film open us up to the invisible, or does it merely create an appealing illusion of it?
The debate is held in partnership with EKRANy magazine.
Filmawka Film Club after the screening of “Morte Cucina”
Saturday 14 November, 22:55, Kinoteka 4
Host: Irena Kołtun (Filmawka)
Culinary revenge cinema? A tale of love simmering in Thai dishes? Or perhaps a delicious recipe for a hateful act? “Morte Cucina” is a film full of surprises, hidden within an artfully told story that shows just how thin the line is between love and hate. At the first-ever Filmawka Film Club discussion, we’ll take a closer look at the latest film by Pen-ek Ratanaruang, a favourite among Five Flavours audiences. “Morte Cucina” is a real treat for anyone who loves unconventional revenge stories.
Debate: Close Encounters: Vietnam the Czech Way, Vietnam the Polish Way (after the screening of “Summer School, 2001”)
Sunday 15 November, 16:15, Kino Muranów
Host: Jakub Królikowski (Five Flavours)
Guests: Dužan Duong, David Bui, Thang Xuan Ngo, Natalia Nguyen, Hania Pogonowska
What do Vietnamese communities in Poland and the Czech Republic have in common? How do migration, growing up between cultures and living between different languages shape our sense of identity? Join us for a meeting with members of Vietnamese communities in Poland and the Czech Republic, as well as people connected with the diasporas, to explore the many faces of life abroad. The starting point will be the film “Summer School, 2001” and the experiences of Việt Kiều – people of Vietnamese origin living outside Vietnam – but the conversation will also open up a broader perspective on what diaspora means, how communities build a sense of belonging and negotiate their place between cultures.
Performative Lecture: What Is Spirituality? (before the screening of “Becoming Human”)
Sunday 15 November, 17:30, Kinomuzeum
Łukasz Mańkowski (Five Flavours)
A performative exploration of the ways spirituality manifests itself in the contemporary world. This interdisciplinary lecture will take place before the film screening.
Debate: Spirituality in the Age of Globalisation. How Do East and West Draw from Each Other? (after the screening of “I Am with a Monk”)
Monday 16 November, 19:00, Kinoteka 4
Host: Zuzanna Kowalczyk (PISMO), guests: Asia Kubiakowska, Tomasz Stawiszyński, Beata Urbańska
Is Eastern spirituality really taking the West by storm, or is it itself being transformed by globalisation? We’ll discuss how religious practices are changing under the influence of capitalism, psychology and technology, what happens when meditation becomes a wellbeing tool, and how tradition meets modernity. In a global exchange of spiritual ideas, can we still speak of East and West – or are we witnessing the emergence of a new shared hybrid?
The debate is held in partnership with Pismo Magazine.
Talk: All the Worlds of Tsui Hark (after the screening of “A Chinese Ghost Story”)
Tuesday 17 November, 19:00, Kino Muranów
Host: Marcin Krasnowolski (Five Flavours), guest: Victor Fan
Poland’s first Tsui Hark retrospective is the perfect opportunity to address the key issues that will help us understand his place in global popular cinema. At what point in the history of Hong Kong cinema did Tsui emerge, and what did he bring to it? What inspired his successive films, and how did he satisfy his inner need to constantly reinvent the ways in which they were made? And finally, why is his name still not mentioned outside Asia in the same breath as Spielberg or Lucas?
Events at Turnus Cafe
At Turnus Cafe, 31 Emilii Plater Street, you’ll find a special Asian-inspired menu available throughout the festival, music curated by our team and a whole host of additional events – all free of charge! Our club stays open late, so come and find our team and volunteers there. Celebrate the 20th anniversary of Five Flavours with us!
Learn to play mahjong
Thursday 12 November, 18:30-21:30
(Polish League of Mahjong)
The Polish League of Mahjong is putting together a special workshop dedicated to the traditional game of mahjong and its Japanese variation, riichi mājan. Whether you’re looking to improve your existing skills under the guidance of experienced players or try the game for the very first time, you’re welcome to join. Mahjong is a traditional Chinese strategy game for four players, combining elements of card games such as rummy and poker with the tile-based gameplay of Rummikub. The workshop will begin with a short introduction to the history of the game and its enduring popularity across Asia.
No booking required – just drop in whenever it suits you and feel like a character straight out of one of the many Chinese-language films! They say the juiciest gossip comes out over a game of mahjong. Who knows, you might even find out what we’re cooking up for next year!
Slow down with tea
(kohane.tea x Moya Matcha)
Friday 13 November, 12:00-14:00
Amid the hustle and bustle of the festival, with one screening after another and endless conversations, it’s worth finding a moment just for yourself. Nothing brings greater solace than a quiet moment with a warm cup of tea. We invite you to an intimate gathering, during which we’ll slow down together and explore the flavours, aromas and mindfulness hidden within the tea ritual. Our artistic director, Łukasz Mańkowski – the creator of the kohane.tea concept – will guide you through this experience. It’s an opportunity to take a breather, calm your senses and discover that it’s not just films that have their own stories. Every tea holds its own story, embedded in its place of origin, the work of the people who create it, and the flavours that are worth taking a moment to savour.
The group will be intimate in nature, with a limited number of places. Each participant will receive a tea-themed gift from Moya Matcha.
Reserve a spot: reservations@turnus.fun
Anniversary pub quiz
(Filmawka)
Friday 13 November, 00:00-01:00
Show off your knowledge of Asian cinema and festival history at our anniversary quiz, organised in collaboration with Filmawka. Are you a true Five Flavours superfan? Or perhaps you simply live and breathe Asian cinema? Here’s your chance to put that passion to the test – both your love of Asian films and your knowledge of the Five Flavours universe. And we’ve prepared prizes for the winners: passes for next year’s edition and iconic goodies from our merch collection.
You can take part in teams of one to four people. When registering, please provide your team name and the full names of all participants. You can also sign up on your own and find teammates on the spot! Places are limited. Registration closes on 12 November at 23:59.
Book a spot: info@turnus.fun
Anniversary vinyl DJ set by Krzysztof Dziuba
(Opowieści księżycowe, Dwójka Polskie Radio)
Friday 13 November, 01:00-03:00
Put the record on, dim the lights a little, and let’s set off on a musical journey! Krzysztof Dziuba is renowned for his love of Japanese city pop and that’s exactly how he’ll be taking us on a journey through the beautiful sounds of his own vinyl collection. There’ll be a touch of 80s nostalgia and plenty of musical discoveries – all exclusively on vinyl, with a selection that has a groove all of its own. Come along to listen, hit the dance floor and let yourself be surprised!
