These are stories about the most valuable household items, passed from generation to generation, painstakingly cared for or sometimes forgotten or lost. Touched by a warm hand, they are revitalised, their content and value restored.
Ten new films were added to the collection, the product of cooperation between three generations, grandparents, parents, their children and grandchildren. Long family gatherings, conversations and memories led to the initial concept for the script/screenplay. The next step was independent preparation of the scenery and the puppets, followed by the long process of animation, storyline and narration. Just the sound and music... and our film is ready.
We invite you into the world of Sejny's Memory.
Read some stories below:
GRANDMA MARIANNA’S PILLOWCASES
When my Grandma was a small girl, she used to visit her sister in Frącki. There, they would sit together and embroider pillowcases in beautiful, often floral, patterns. Grandma said it was terribly hard work. Then they put the covers on the pillows and eiderdowns and made the beds with two pillows on each side. That’s how they used to do it.
Those pillowcases are our family‘s keepsake, because only these survived various fires and moving house several times. This bedding is still in use and those small cushions decorate the sitting room.
GRANDPA’S DESK
My Grandpa was a teacher in Kłączno, a small Kashubian village. He organized the cultural life of the village; he was an important person there. Grandfather's daily workplace was the large desk that stood in his office. The desk was full of drawers and compartments, filled with notes, stamps, photographs, pens and letters. Everything was in order; each thing had its own special place. We, the grandchildren longed to sit at our Grandfather’s desk at least once. We would feel very important then. We used to sneak in to poke around in those drawers secretly, though there was always a risk of being caught in the act. The desk was exclusively reserved for him. It was his daily workplace, for 60 years he sat there writing his letters, reading his daily newspaper, taking notes and working on Kashubian documents.
GRANDMA MARIA’S LITTLE BELL
My Grandma comes from a noble family, which has the crest of the Abdanks. There is a family tradition over many generations that each child is presented with a small gold object by their parents when they get married. My Grandma received a small golden bell from her parents. Nobody doubted the fact that its sound had magical powers. It protected the house against thunderbolts. At night, it scared away wolves lying in wait for the livestock. It was believed that the sound of the small bell, not more than three centimetres across, could bring good luck and salvation in times of need to members of the household. This bell is still in the family and one day it will be passed down to the children, so the sound of this little bell will bind many family histories together.
