The Polish-French co-production follows Nawojka, a teenager who rebels against a male-dominated rural community.
“It is a deeply personal film that unites the two cultures inside me,” Kowalski, born in northern France to Polish parents, told Polish Radio ahead of the screening at 20:30 local time (18:30 GMT).
Strong Polish crew
Her Will Be Done stars newcomer Maria Wróbel opposite French actress Roxane Mesquida. Visual effects were handled by Warsaw-based Studio ORKA, with music ranging from folk-rock group Brathanki to disco-polo stalwarts Akcent.
Cannes’ main competition also features A Pale View of Hills (Pejzaż w kolorze sepii), a Japan-UK-Poland adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s 1982 novel, directed by Japanese filmmaker Kei Ishikawa.
The drama was shot by Polish cinematographer Piotr Niemyjski and scored by composer Paweł Mykietyn, a frequent collaborator of Oscar-nominee Małgorzata Szumowska.
Shorts in the market
Two Polish shorts—animated satire Food Chain and documentary Wszystko, by pamiętać—are screening in the festival’s Short Film Corner, a non-competitive industry platform.
Now in its 78th edition, the Cannes Film Festival is the world’s largest cinema showcase, running 12 days on the French Riviera with gala premieres, a bustling film market and red-carpet appearances by global stars.
This year’s event opened on Tuesday with a tribute to Ukraine and an honorary Palme d’Or for Oscar-winner Robert De Niro. Twenty-two features are vying for the Palme d’Or, to be awarded on May 24 by a jury led by French actress Juliette Binoche.
Poland has a strong Cannes pedigree: Andrzej Wajda won an honorary Palme in 1982, while Paweł Pawlikowski’s Cold War took best director in 2018. Industry analysts say the slate of 2025 selections signals a resurgence of Polish-backed projects following the pandemic.
(jh)
Source: IAR, PAP, ICS, Cineuropa, Polskie Radio, Screen Daily