Experiencing Interruptions?

TRAVEL ESSENTIALS

An unexpected road trip to their hometown in Poland enables two women to confront their childhood traumas and build themselves anew. Ada, a pregnant American journalist of Polish descent, is struggling to find herself in the new reality in Hamburg. One day she gets an autobiographical book about a childhood trauma, with a personalized dedication. Mysterious sender turns out to be Roksana, her childhood colleague. Ada decides to go with Roksana to their hometown to describe her friend’s gripping story. Once they get to Poland, nothing is what it seems. Roksana’s mother is determined to guard the past: whatever happened, will never see the light of the day.

  • Kamila Tarabura
    Director
    Into the Night, Absolute Beginners
  • Kamila Tarabura
    Writer
    Absolute Beginners
  • Katarzyna Warnke
    Writer
  • Andrzej Muszyński
    Producer
    Wataha / The Pack, Hold Tight, The Woods, Absolute Beginners
  • Michael Eckelt
    Producer
  • Lennart Lenzing
    Producer
  • Dagmara Domińczyk
    Key Cast
    "ADA"
    The Count of Monte Cristo, The Lost Daughter, Succession, Priscilla
  • Katarzyna Warnke
    Key Cast
    "ROKSANA"
    Botoks, Kobiety mafii, Absolute Beginners
  • Małgorzata Hajewska-Krzysztofik
    Key Cast
    "KAROLINA"
    Śubuk, Kobieta z…, Informacja zwrotna, Forst
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    RZECZY NIEZBĘZDNE
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 10 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    May 31, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    1,500,000 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    Poland
  • Country of Filming:
    Germany, Poland
  • Language:
    Polish
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - Kamila Tarabura

Director and screenwriter, born in 1990 in Poland. She graduated from the Warsaw Film School and the Wajda School. Her short film „Into the Night” (2020) won the Best Live Action Short Film Award at the Warsaw Film Festival. Kamila gained her film experience by making short fictional films, commercials, and music videos. She was the second unit director in the multiple award winning „The Green Border” (2023) by Agnieszka Holland, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival and was nominated for the European Film Awards. Kamila also assisted Claire Denis in „High Life” (2018). In „Absolute Beginners” (2023) – an original six episode coming-of-age drama series produced for Netflix – Kamila was the concept writer, screenwriter and format director. „Travel Essentials” is her feature debut.

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Director Statement

For me, „Travel Essentials”, above all, a universal story of fighting for the truth, because without truth, without acknowledging injustice, constructing an identity is impossible. And it's not about a simple conviction that confessing the truth is a sudden liberation, because it’s not. But certainly, it can be the beginning of building oneself anew and learning to relive sensory experiences anew.

„Travel Essentials” is an elevated drama, representing womanhood and female sexuality. We use well known pop culture codes deliberately: two women in the car, a pub, a lover, a gas station, a motel. The structure of a road movie is combined with a relevant psychological theme - the struggle for identity. I like to think of our film as the reverse of Thelma & Louise: instead of best friends, we have two women who are strangers to each other, but who hold a mirror to each other as they travel back to the place where they grew up to confront their traumas. Both protagonists lead affluent lives. They have caring partners, beautiful houses, but they still feel empty at some point. When writing the script, I set myself the goal of capturing the sadness of adult life. A sadness that is not visible at first glance, but which is hidden under the surface of smiles and a seemingly prosperous life. They have to move each other out of limbo, so that their supposedly arranged life is not superficial, without feeling, or without stability.