Paul Kowalski
Writer / Director
PATTON OSWALT JOINS SARDINIA AS EP
Deadline announced today that Emmy-winning actor and comedian Patton Oswalt has boarded SARDINIA as an executive producer, alongside actress Meredith Salenger, as the film contends for an Oscar in the Best Live Action Short race.
CINEUROPA INTERVIEW
Cineuropa, the leading site on European cinema, interviewed Paul about filmmaking across nations, and SARDINIA.
THE HOUSEMASTER: TOP 50 HORROR SCREENPLAYS
THE HOUSEMASTER has been selected by The Dead List as one of the top market-ready original horror screenplays in Hollywood. The script sets the evil of ROSEMARY’S BABY amid the boarding school world of Lindsay Anderson’s IF…
AMERICAN FILM CONVENTION
The AFC has selected SARDINIA to screen as one of 24 shorts during their inaugural event in Los Angeles, October 15-17.
ROXIE CINEMA OSCAR FIRST LOOKS SCREENING
SARDINIA has been selected and featured as part of San Francisco’s iconic Roxie Cinema’s Oscar First Looks Program. Screenings start September 20, with tickets available here.
BEST DIRECTOR: FLICKERS RHODE ISLAND
Paul has won Best Director for SARDINIA at the 42nd Flickers Rhode Island International Film Festival. The film was chosen from 7,000+ submissions, then singled out for the overall grand prize for best direction, despite it being a short, among all features, docs and animated films represented. SARDINIA also now officially qualifies for the BAFTA Film Awards, with the chance to be BAFTA-nominated in January.
FLICKERS RHODE ISLAND FILM FESTIVAL
SARDINIA is continuing its festival run at the 42nd Flickers Rhode Island International Film Festival — selected out of over 7,000 submissions from 110 countries, one of only a handful of qualifying festivals for the Oscars, BAFTA, GOYA, and Canadian Screen Awards. Tickets for Saturday’s screening at Providence’s AS220 are available here.
SARDINIA PREMIERE: INDY SHORTS
SARDINIA is kicking off its festival run by making its World Premiere at the Oscar-qualifying Indy Shorts International Film Festival on July 26. The film was one of 3% films selected out of over 5100 submissions, with the lineup announced by MovieMaker magazine. SARDINIA stars Philip Ettinger, and features Martha Plimpton, Olek Krupa and Breeda Wool.
CINEMATHEQUE SCREENING
PAPER TIGER is making its Canadian premiere at The Cinematheque. The screening is part of Frames of Mind, which shows films about mental health, followed by discussions with medical professionals; the event is co-sponsored by the Community Mental Wellness Association of Canada, and the University of British Columbia’s psychiatry department.
TALKHOUSE ESSAY
Paul was recently asked to write an article for Talkhouse, whose contributors include Oliver Stone, Isabelle Huppert, Darren Aronofsky and Barry Jenkins. The article discusses Paul’s childhood in Saudi Arabia, and enduring love for LAWRENCE OF ARABIA.
PAPER TIGER INTERVIEWS
Paul was recently interviewed about PAPER TIGER by LRM Online, and with the film’s cast on Screen Chatter.
VARIETY ANNOUNCES PAPER TIGER ACQUISITION
PAPER TIGER has been sold by The Gersh Agency and acquired by Gravitas Ventures for North American distribution, as covered by Variety. The film will be released on August 24.
“25 SCREENWRITERS TO WATCH” IN 2021
Paul has been selected as one of “25 Screenwriters to Watch” for 2021 by the Austin Film Festival. The announcement was presented by No Film School, introduced as “some of the most exciting new voices in storytelling today”.
SHORE SCRIPTS DIRECTORS ROSTER
Paul has been selected to be on the global Directors Roster of Shore Scripts, where top screenplays from around the world are read by select directors for development.
FARGO: BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE & BEST IN FESTIVAL
PAPER TIGER has won Best Narrative Feature and Best in Festival at the Fargo Film Festival, which takes place March 18-28. Residents of North Dakota and Minnesota can buy tickets and watch the film on Wednesday, March 17th via Eventive.
AUSTIN: PAPER TIGER WINS AUDIENCE & JURY AWARDS
Austin Film Festival has awarded PAPER TIGER with the Narrative Feature Audience Award, and a special Honorable Mention from the Jury, which included Producer Roy Lee (IT, THE GRUDGE, DOCTOR SLEEP, THE RING, THE DISASTER ARTIST, OLDBOY, BATES MOTEL), Pixar Creative Executive Megan Alderson, and actor/director Robert Townsend (EDDIE MURPHY: RAW, THE METEOR MAN, HOLLYWOOD SHUFFLE).
AUSTIN CHRONICLE - PAPER TIGER REVIEW
The Austin Chronicle reviewed PAPER TIGER at Austin Film Festival.
AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL - FEATURED PANELIST
Paul is featured as a panelist as part of Austin Film Festival’s Writer’s Conference, which also includes John Logan, Gillian Flynn, Brian Helgeland, and others.
HOLLYWOOD REPORTER ANNOUNCEMENT
The Hollywood Reporter announced PAPER TIGER as part of the full slate line-up at Austin Film Festival this October.
DEADLINE ANNOUNCEMENT
In an exclusive announcement, Deadline headlined PAPER TIGER’s premiere at the 27th annual Austin Film Festival this October.
AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL PREMIERE
Austin Film Festival published in its First Wave announcement that PAPER TIGER will premiere at AFF on October 22-29.
PAPER TIGER WRAP
Paul recently wrapped in LA on PAPER TIGER, the psychological drama/thriller feature he wrote and directed. The film is currently in post-production, and will make its festival premiere in fall 2020.
MOVIEMAKER iNTERVIEW
Paul was recently interviewed by Moviemaker Magazine about his work on BREATHE, and his background.
CINE GOLDEN EAGLE AWARDS JUDGING
Paul recently served as a judge for the 2017 Cine Golden Eagle Awards.
FORT Lauderdale Film Festival AWARD
BREATHE was awarded Best College Film (Long Narrative) at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival.
NORWICH Film Festival
BREATHE recently screened at The Forum in Norwich, as part of the UK's 6th Annual Norwich Film Festival.
MALIBU INTERNATIONAL Film Festival
BREATHE recently screened at the Malibu Civic Theater, as part of the Malibu International Film Festival.
AESTHETICA SHORT FILM Festival NOMINATION
BREATHE screened several times in York, England, as part of the BAFTA-Qualifying Aesthetica Short Film Festival (ASFF), where it is nominated in the Best Drama category.
Underexposed Film Festival NominatioN
BREATHE has been nominated for Best Collegiate Student Film and the Grand Jury Prize at the Underexposed Film Festival in Rock Hill, South Carolina. Read about the festival, and BREATHE, in the Rock City Herald.
Cine Golden Eagle Finalist
BREATHE was recently awarded a Finalist plaque at CINE's 59th Golden Eagle Awards.
POLISH PREMIERE AT THE AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAL
BREATHE had its Polish premiere at the American Film Festival, screening at the Kino Nowe Horyzonty in Wroclaw, Poland.
Beijing Film Academy AwarD
BREATHE has won an Audience Award at the 15th Annual International Student Film and Video Festival of the Beijing Film Academy. Paul was present in Beijing for the festival, as part of a week-long cultural exchange.
Blow-up ARTHOUSE Film Fest Finalist
BREATHE has been announced as a finalist at the Blowup Film Fest in Chicago, where it is competing for the VGIK Award.
Southamption Film Festival NominationS
BREATHE is nominated for several awards at the UK’s Southampton International Film Festival: Best Short, Screenplay, Leading Actor (Kristof Konrad), Cinematography (Simu Feng) and Score (Lucas Lechowski).
Polish Film Festival NOMINATION
Paul attended the opening gala of the Polish Film Festival at Hollywood’s Egyptian Theater, where BREATHE is nominated for the Cinema Without Borders Best Short Film Award. Days prior, he appeared on a press panel to launch the festival alongside Polish actor, Tomasz Kot (COLD WAR).
Catalina Film Festival
BREATHE recently screened at City Hall on Catalina Island, as part of the Catalina Film Festival.
Breckenridge Film Festival Awards
Paul was recently in Breckenridge, Colorado representing BREATHE as it was awarded Best Student Film and Best Editing at the Breckenridge Film Festival. He was also interviewed by film blog, Vimooz.
Woods Hole Film Festival Award
BREATHE recently picked up an award for Best Short Drama at the Woods Hole Film Festival in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
Long Island Film Expo NOMINATion
BREATHE is nominated for Best Short Film at the Long Island International Film Expo (LIIFE) held in Bellmore, New York.
Visioni Corte Festival FINALIST
The Visioni Corte Festival in Minturo, Italy has named BREATHE as a finalist in its International Short Film Category.
Videomaker Article
Videomaker Magazine has published a featured article that Paul wrote about the place of mystery and instinct in filmmaking, related through the prism of his films. The piece also includes a behind-the-scenes video chronicling the making of BREATHE.
Variety
Variety magazine mentioned Paul and BREATHE, as it published winners of the Big Island Film Festival.
Big Island Film Festival AWARD
BREATHE was announced as the winner of the Best Student Short at Big Island Film Festival in Hawaii.
4KHub Interview
Paul and cinematographer, Simu Feng, were recently interviewed by 4KHUB about how they made BREATHE.
Cinema at the Edge
BREATHE recently screened in Santa Monica as part of Cinema at the Edge (CATE).
Derby Film Festival AWARD
Audiences at the UK’s Derby Film Festival have voted BREATHE the winner of the festival’s Best Short Film award.
Cine Gear Expo FINALIST
BREATHE continues its competitive run as a finalist in the Cine Gear Expo Film Series. The event, which screens all finalists on the Paramount lot in Hollywood, is the premier event for the technology, entertainment and media industries, visited by over 16,000 professionals from 60 countries.
Sunscreen Film Festival AWARD
BREATHE has taken home Best Short Film at the Academy-sponsored Sunscreen Film Festival in St. Petersburg, Florida.
USA Film Festival Award
BREATHE has been awarded an Honorable Mention at the 46th Annual USA Film Festival in Dallas, Texas.
NewFilmmakers & BritWeek
BREATHE will screen in downtown LA as part of the NewFilmmakers LA. The event is co-sponsored by BritWeek, which aims to highlight the best of contemporary British filmmaking.
Julien Dubuque Film Festival
BREATHE has been selected for the Julien Dubuque International Film Festival. The prestigious Iowa festival was voted one of "50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee" by Moviemaker Magazine in 2016.
Hollywood Reporter
Paul was listed in The Hollywood Reporter, as it announced the winners of the 2016 Beverly Hills Film Festival.
Beverly Hills Film Festival Award
BREATHE has won the Audience Award for Best Short at the Beverly Hills Film Festival. The award was presented at the closing festival gala, held in Beverly Hills. Paul was joined at the festival’s opening by lead actors, Kristof Konrad and Alicja Bachleda, and producer, Christina Dow, where the film had its world premiere at Hollywood’s TLC Chinese Theater.
AFI PREMIERE OF BREATHE
The premiere screening of BREATHE recently took place at the American Film Institute.
North Hollywood CineFest
Paul recently attended the NoHo CineFest awards ceremony, where SHADOWS was nominated for Best Drama Short.
Raindance Film Festival
SHADOWS has been selected for the 23rd Raindance Film Festival in London.
Polish Film Festival
SHADOWS has been selected for the Polish Film Festival in Los Angeles.
BAFTA NEWCOMERS PROGRAM
Paul has been accepted into the BAFTA LA Newcomers Program, which mentors promising British filmmakers.
WANDSWORTH Guardian REVIEWS BATTERSEA
The Wandsworth Guardian has written about Paul and BATTERSEA ahead of the film’s Raindance screening.
BATTERSEA PREMIERE AT RAINDANCE FILM FESTIVAL
BATTERSEA makes its world premiere at the 20th Raindance Film Festival at the Apollo Piccadilly on Regent Street.
