Jerzy Wójcik

A cinematographer’s career

Jerzy Wójcik’s work includes Eroica, Ashes and Diamonds and Pharaoh. He completed cinematography studies in 1955 and obtained his diploma in 1964¹.

Space, light and movement in The Deluge

Wójcik was responsible for the film’s cinematography². Watch the transitions between landscape, crowds and a character’s face. A wide shot can establish war’s scale; a close-up can reveal its effect on an individual.

One detailed example is the Wołmontowicze revenge sequence discussed in the film guide, where lighting and fire serve the drama. Seweryn Kuśmierczyk’s analysis also cites Wójcik’s recollection of danger during filming.

Returning to his own film

During restoration, Aleksander Winecki performed colour grading under Wójcik’s supervision³. His participation connects the original production with the later renewal of its images. Colour grading and repairing material damage have a different purpose from shortening the narrative. Marcin Kot Bastkowski made the new edit.

Director and teacher of cinematographers

Wójcik also taught at Łódź Film School’s Cinematography Department and directed the features Skarga (1990) and Wrota Europy (1999). In 1994 he became the first chairman of the Polish Society of Cinematographers (PSC). The school awarded him an honorary doctorate on 13 December 2018⁴. His career thus extended beyond shooting The Deluge to directing and passing skills to later generations.