ISOLAND: Icelandic stories of Polish immigrants

For Kuba Witek, his first trip to Iceland in 2015 was the fulfillment of a birthday wish he made when he was turning 32. This short stay inspired him to embark on a lonely trip around the island on a bicycle, which he completed a year later. It was an adventure of a lifetime, during which he met many amazing people, experienced the charms of Icelandic nature and got to know himself better. Every day, by writing short entries with photos, he shared his impressions with the Polish community in Iceland through the Iceland News Polska website. His readers were cheering for him, giving him advice and offering support. The Poles and Icelanders he met on the way shared a few a wonderful qualities - they were all very cordial, helpful and hospitable.

After returning to Poland, Kuba described this unforgettable adventure in the book "RING ROAD. Around Iceland on a bicycle".

His next dream came true he went to Iceland again in the spring of 2017, this time with a jeep and a camera, capturing breathtaking views and conversations with compatriots who decided to call Iceland their home. The result is a documentary film, which depicts people who arrived in Iceland in various years (from as early as 1991) and live in all corners of the island: from Stöðvarfjörður on the Eastern fjords, Dalvík on the far north, Akranes on the west coast, Selfoss in the south, Vogar and Keflavík on the Reykjanes Peninsula to the capital of Iceland - Reykjavík. They have different interests, views and professions. Marta is the editor-in-chief of Iceland News Polska, which connects the whole Icelandic Polonia. Gregor runs his own restaurant - á Gregor's - his lamb chops are praised by the Icelanders themselves. Maciek moved to Iceland from Cyprus and, starting from a food truck, he worked his way into owning a restaurant, which aspires to serve the best kebab in Reykjavik - Viking Kebab. Monika and Rysiek run the Arctic Wind Motel, which hosts travelers from around the world. Krzysiek and Mateusz decided to go in a different direction and, using their experience in car mechanics, established the Ice Pol rental company (www.icepole.eu). Michał is a filmmaker, Magda is running up the Icelandic mountains, Piotrek is the author of the blog Icestory.pl and a book about Iceland, Sylwia takes photos, Sonia is looking for interesting people with the Hidden People project, Bogusia and Piotr are connoisseurs of Icelandic nature, and Kasia and Grzesiek share their impressions from working on a farm via the blog islandzkifarmer.pl.

On 11 November 2017, at the Polish Embassy in Reykjavik, the film premiere took place, at which all its participants finally met - many for the first time. The film gains recognition in Poland, won the Grand Prix award at the Media Travel festival in Łódź and the award for the Best Debut at the 5th edition of the EMIGRA Festival, which took place in Berlin, Kiev, Warsaw, Chicago and Lviv.