"You have to keep the score in your mind, not your mind on the score," said conductor and composer Zdzisław Szostak (1930-2019), the protagonist of the film "The Score in My Mind." This credo became the starting point for a cinematic narrative about the life, career, choices, and responsibilities of this artist. In his teens, during the occupation, he earned his first money playing the accordion in his hometown of Sosnowiec. Later, he attended high school and studied in Katowice, where he became friends with Wojciech Kilar. As a conductor, he worked at the Silesian Philharmonic, then became the artistic director of the Poznań Philharmonic, and since 1971, he has been associated with Łódź. He collaborated with the Łódź Philharmonic, the Academy of Music, and the film industry, as Łódź at that time was the Polish center of cinematography. He composed for short and feature films, with over 40 film scores and 200 recordings of film music by other authors in his repertoire.

Directors Filip Bajon, Sławomir Kryński, Janusz Majewski, and composer Zbigniew Preisner speak about his contributions to cinema; musicians Mariusz Drzewicki and Mieczysław Pawlak discuss his composing and conducting work; and musicologist Prof. Jacek Szerszenowicz analyzes his magnum opus, the monumental mass Missa Latina from 2003. His daughter, Dorota Szostak-Filipczyk, reminisces about Szostak as a father and family head. However, Szostak himself provides the most insight about his life. The filmmaker managed to record many scenes with him, accessing archival records and testimonies. The result is a film about an artist – a conductor, composer, and teacher who devoted his entire life to his paramount passion: music. Despite his numerous and significant achievements, he remains relatively unknown to many music enthusiasts. By presenting him in the film, the creators hope that by honoring the artist, they will also contribute to the popularization of his persona and the works he left behind. 

Starring
Zdzisław Szostak
Janusz Majewski
Filip Bajon
Sławomir Kryński
Zbigniew Preisner
Mariusz Drzewicki
Dorota Szostak – Filipczyk
Mieczysław Pawlak
Jacek Szerszenowicz

Directed by
Andrzej B. Czulda

Written by
Andrzej B. Czulda
Mieczysław Kuźmicki

Idea by
Tadeusz Wijata

Cinematography
Jacek Duszyński
Sławomir Pękala

Drone operator
Łukasz Cybulski

Sound mixing
Bogdan Klat

Edited by
Paweł Makowski PSM

Color correction
Artur Frątczak

Music consultation
Katarzyna Figat

Archival footage from WFO
Jakub Krakowiak

Archival footage from TVP3 Łódź
Anna Krubska

Digitalisation of WFO footage
Jakub Walter

Animations by
Łukasz Grygiel

English version
Wiktoria Witek

Legal support
Monika Żelazowska

Production management
Jędrzej Hejduk

Administrator
Beata Szwedzińska

Production cooperation
Marek Pelski

Producer
Waldemar Drozd
Sławomir Kalwinek

The creators of the film would like to thank the following
Dorota Szostak-Filipczyk
Jacek Filipczyk
Tomasz Bęben – The Artur Rubinstein Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra
Paulina Szachnowska – TV Toya
Jolanta Miernik-Szostak
Sławomir Fijałkowski
Rafał Jóźwiak
Michał Dondzik
Piotr Knop – Toya Studios
Mariola Wojtysiak – Toya Studios

 The film uses recordings of musical pieces
by The Artur Rubinstein Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra
and
The Grażyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz Academy of Music in Lodz  

J. S. Bach – Toccata and fuga d-moll BMV 565
And other recordings from the Upright Music library
License: SONORIA

 The film uses a fragment of the song titled OBEREK /music by Alexandre Tansman/
Published by Esxhig Max Soc. /Universal Music Publishing sp. z o.o./

 Archival materials from the collections of
WFO Film Studio Lodz
Polish Television Archive Branch in Lodz
TVi Lodman Archive
„Concert of the Lodz Philharmonic dedicated to the memory of Pope John Paul II”

 Film clips
,,XAWERY DUNIKOWSKI"
Dir. Konstanty Gordon, Dop. Wiktor Prejs, Comp. Zdzisław Szostak
production WFO Film Studio Lodz

 ,,JAŚ I MAŁGOSIE"
Dir. Jerzy Hoffman, Edward Skórzewski, Dop. Wacław Florkowski, Comp. Zdzisław Szostak
production WFD Film Studio

 ,,EPITAFIUM DLA BARBARY RADZIWIŁŁÓWNY"
Dir. Jerzy Majewski, Dop. Zygmunt Samosiuk, Comp. Zdzisław Szostak
production Perspektywa Film Studio

,,KSIĘGA WIELKICH ŻYCZEŃ"
Dir. Sławomir Kryński, Dop. Tomasz Wert, Comp Zdzisław Szostak
production INDEKS Film Studio

 ,,ARIA DLA ATLETY"
Dir. Filip Bajon, Dop. Jerzy Zieliński, Comp. Zdzisław Szostak
production  TOR Film Studio

 Movie posters
Museum of Cinematography in Lodz

 Family photographs
SINFONICA
Fundacja im. Zdzisława Szostaka

Caricatures
Danuta Derwich
Lena Szostak

 Photographs for animation
Jacek Jóźwiak

 Photographs 
Tomasz Komorowski

 Archival photographs
National Digital Archive

 production
WFO Film Studio Lodz

 Film co-financed by
Polish Film Institute

 PISF experts who recommended co-financing the film
Dagmara Drzazga
Marek Miller
Andrzej Sapija

 © WFO 2024