Joanna Kulig
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Joanna Kulig (; born 24 June 1982) is a Polish actress and singer, best known for her role in the 2018
historical drama A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romance film, romances, adventure f ...
film ''
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
'', which earned her the
European Film Award for Best Actress The European Film Award for Best Actress is an award given out at the annual European Film Awards to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film industry. The awards are presented by the European Film Academ ...
. Her other notable credits include the films ''
Elles Elles is a surname, and may refer to: *Bertram Walter Elles (1877–1963), British colonial civil servant *Diana Elles, Baroness Elles (1921–2009), British lawyer and peer *Sir Edmond Elles (1848–1934), British Army lieutenant general *Gertru ...
'', ''
The Woman in the Fifth ''The Woman in the Fifth'' (French title ''La femme du Vème'') is a 2011 French-British-Polish drama film directed and written by Paweł Pawlikowski. Adapted from Douglas Kennedy (writer), Douglas Kennedy's 2007 novel of the same name, the film ...
'', ''
Ida Ida or IDA may refer to: Astronomy * Ida Facula, a mountain on Amalthea, a moon of Jupiter *243 Ida, an asteroid *International Docking Adapter, a docking adapter for the International Space Station Computing *Intel Dynamic Acceleration, a techn ...
'' and '' The Innocents'', as well as the
Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
series ''
The Eddy ''The Eddy'' is a French–American musical drama streaming television miniseries, set in Paris. The first two episodes are directed by Damien Chazelle and written by Jack Thorne. Its music was scored by Glen Ballard and Randy Kerber. The serie ...
''.


Early life and education

Kulig was born on 24 June 1982 in Krynica,
Lesser Poland Voivodeship Lesser Poland Voivodeship or Lesser Poland Province (in pl, województwo małopolskie ), also known as Małopolska, is a voivodeship (province), in southern Poland. It has an area of , and a population of 3,404,863 (2019). It was created on 1 ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
. Her mother worked as a cook at a local kindergarten and her father was a folk poet. She was raised with four siblings in Muszynka. Her younger sister, Justyna Schneider, is also an actress and adopted their great-grandmother's surname to avoid confusion as their first names are similar. While still living in Krynica, Kulig graduated from the Frédéric Chopin First Degree State Music School where she studied piano. At 18, she moved to
Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
, and enrolled at the Mieczysław Karłowicz State Music School Complex, from which she graduated in singing. In the meantime, she also completed the Kraków Vocational Technical High School for Hotel Administration. In 2007, Kulig earned an acting degree with a specialisation in singing from the
AST National Academy of Theatre Arts in Kraków AST National Academy of Theatre Arts (Polish: ''Akademia Sztuk Teatralnych w Krakowie'', often shortened to AST), is a drama school based in Kraków and Wrocław, Poland. It was founded in 1946 by actor Juliusz Osterwa, who took the initial steps ...
. She was the first in her family to graduate from a university.


Career

In 1998, Kulig won an episode of the Polish television talent show '' Szansa na sukces'' by performing
Grzegorz Turnau Grzegorz Jerzy Turnau (born 31 July 1967) is a Polish composer, pianist, poet and singer. He has released eleven albums to date, including one (Cafe Sułtan) made up of his own versions of songs by Jeremi Przybora and Jerzy Wasowski, and most h ...
's song "Między ciszą a ciszą". She took part in the show's annual final, and came third. Turnau later invited her to sing with him on his 2002 album ''Nawet''. Kulig also participated in
season two Season 2 may refer to: * ''Season 2'' (Infinite album) * ''2econd Season ''2econd Season'' is the second and most recent album by Atlanta-based rapper Unk. Release It was released on November 4, 2008. Guest Performers The album features gu ...
of the Polish television talent show ''
Idol Idol or Idols may refer to: Religion and philosophy * Cult image, a neutral term for a man-made object that is worshipped or venerated for the deity, spirit or demon that it embodies or represents * Murti, a point of focus for devotion or medit ...
'' in 2002. She was eliminated in the semi-finals. Kulig made her stage debut in 2006 as
Hermia Hermia is a fictional character from Shakespeare's play, '' A Midsummer Night's Dream''. She is a girl of ancient Athens named for Hermes, the Greek god of trade. Overview Hermia is caught in a romantic entanglement where she loves one man, Lysa ...
in the play ''
A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...
'' at the
Helena Modrzejewska National Stary Theater in Kraków The Helena Modrzejewska National Stary Theater in Kraków (Polish: ''Narodowy Stary Teatr im. Heleny Modrzejewskiej'') is one of the oldest public stages in Poland and a national institution of culture, first opened in 1781. It was named after re ...
. She made her film debut in 2007 in Grzegorz Pacek's drama ''Wednesday, Thursday Morning'', which earned her the
Gdynia Film Festival The Gdynia Film Festival (until 2011: Polish Film Festival, Polish: ''Festiwal Polskich Filmów Fabularnych w Gdyni'') is an annual film festival first held in Gdańsk (1974–1986), now held in Gdynia, Poland. It has taken place every year sinc ...
award for Best Debut. In 2011, she played Alicja opposite
Juliette Binoche Juliette Binoche (; born 9 March 1964) is a French actress and dancer. She has appeared in more than sixty feature films and has been the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Silver Bear, ...
in
Małgorzata Szumowska Małgorzata Szumowska (; born 26 February 1973) is a Polish film director, screenwriter and producer, born in Kraków. Her 2013 film '' In the Name Of'' received the Teddy Award for Best Feature at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival, an ...
's drama ''
Elles Elles is a surname, and may refer to: *Bertram Walter Elles (1877–1963), British colonial civil servant *Diana Elles, Baroness Elles (1921–2009), British lawyer and peer *Sir Edmond Elles (1848–1934), British Army lieutenant general *Gertru ...
''. Her performance earned her the
Polish Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress The Polish Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress is an annual award given to the best supporting actress in Polish movie. Winners and nominees External links Polish Film Awards Official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Polish Academy Award For Bes ...
, and another recognition at the Gdynia Film Festival for Best Supporting Actress. Kulig also starred alongside
Ethan Hawke Ethan Green Hawke (born November 6, 1970) is an American actor and film director. He has been nominated for four Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award. Hawke has directed three feature films, three off-Broadway plays, and a doc ...
and
Kristin Scott Thomas Dame Kristin Ann Scott Thomas (born 24 May 1960) is a British actress who also holds French citizenship. A five-time British Academy Film Awards, BAFTA Award and Laurence Olivier Award, Olivier Award nominee, she won the BAFTA Award for Best ...
in the 2011 drama ''
The Woman in the Fifth ''The Woman in the Fifth'' (French title ''La femme du Vème'') is a 2011 French-British-Polish drama film directed and written by Paweł Pawlikowski. Adapted from Douglas Kennedy (writer), Douglas Kennedy's 2007 novel of the same name, the film ...
'' directed by
Paweł Pawlikowski Paweł Aleksander Pawlikowski (; born 15 September 1957) is a Polish filmmaker. He garnered early praise for a string of documentaries in the 1990s and for his award-winning feature films of the 2000s, '' Last Resort'' (2000) and ''My Summer of ...
. In 2013, she appeared in
Jacek Borcuch Jacek Borcuch (born 17 April 1970) is a Polish actor, screenwriter and film director. He contributed to more than fifteen films since 1995. Selected filmography References External links * 1970 births Living people Polish male film ...
's drama ''
Lasting ''Lasting'' (original title: Nieulotne) is a 2013 Polish drama film directed and written by Jacek Borcuch. Plot ''Lasting'' is an emotional love story about Michał and Karina, a pair of Polish students who meet and fall in love while working su ...
'', and in Pawlikowski's
Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
-winning drama ''
Ida Ida or IDA may refer to: Astronomy * Ida Facula, a mountain on Amalthea, a moon of Jupiter *243 Ida, an asteroid *International Docking Adapter, a docking adapter for the International Space Station Computing *Intel Dynamic Acceleration, a techn ...
''. She received her second Polish Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for the former. In 2016, she portrayed Sister Irena in
Anne Fontaine Anne Fontaine (born Anne-Fontaine Sibertin-Blanc; 15 July 1959) is a Luxembourger film director, screenwriter, and former actress. She lives and works in France. Life and career Born Anne-Fontaine Sibertin-Blanc in Luxembourg, sister of actor Je ...
's critically acclaimed drama '' The Innocents''. Kulig's international breakthrough came in 2018 when she starred in Pawlikowski's
historical drama A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romance film, romances, adventure f ...
film ''
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
''. The part of Zula, a woman in post-war Poland who joins a folk music touring group, was written specifically for her.
Mark Kermode Mark James Patrick Kermode (, ; ; born 2 July 1963) is an English film critic, musician, radio presenter, television presenter and podcaster. He is the chief film critic for ''The Observer'', contributes to the magazine ''Sight & Sound'', prese ...
of ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'' wrote that she "delivers a star-making performance of astonishing range and depth", and
Mick LaSalle Mick is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Michael. Because of its popularity in Ireland, it is often used in England as a derogatory term for an Irish person or a person of Irish descent. In Australia the meaning broaden ...
of ''
San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...
'' stated that "she takes the role of a lifetime between her teeth, chomps on it, pounds it into the ground and never lets go for a second." According to Scott Feinberg of ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'', "in a fair world ... Kulig would not only be a serious contender for a
best actress Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress awar ...
nom, but would quickly become an in-demand actress in Hollywood, too." Kulig received the Best Actress Award at the
31st European Film Awards The 31st European Film Awards were presented on 15 December 2018 in Seville, Spain. Selection * ''3 Days in Quiberon'' * '' Ága'' * '' Anna's War'' * '' Arrhythmia'' * '' Ayka'' * '' Beast'' * ''Border'' * '' Borg/McEnroe'' * ''Carmen & Lola'' ...
, and the
Polish Academy Award for Best Actress The Polish Film Awards, Polish Academy Award for Best Actress is an annual award given to the best lead actress in Polish picture. Winners and nominees References External links Polish Film Awards
Official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Polish ...
for her performance. That same year, she played local priest's girlfriend with whom she gets pregnant in
Wojciech Smarzowski Wojciech Smarzowski (born 18 January 1963 in Korczyna, Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Korczyna near Krosno) is a Polish screenwriter and director. He studied filmmaking at the Jagiellonian University and the National Film School in Łódź (1990). His ...
's controversial film ''
Clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...
''. In 2019, Polish magazine ''
Wprost ''Wprost'' (, meaning "Directly") is a Polish-language weekly news magazine published in Poznań, Poland.
'' ranked her fourth on its list of the 50 most influential Polish women. Kulig starred as jazz singer Maja in
Damien Chazelle Damien Sayre Chazelle (; born January 19, 1985) is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. He is known for his films ''Whiplash'' (2014), ''La La Land'' (2016), and '' First Man'' (2018). For ''Whiplash'', he was nominated for the ...
's 2020
Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
musical drama series ''
The Eddy ''The Eddy'' is a French–American musical drama streaming television miniseries, set in Paris. The first two episodes are directed by Damien Chazelle and written by Jack Thorne. Its music was scored by Glen Ballard and Randy Kerber. The serie ...
''. She served as one of the jurors of the
Un Certain Regard (, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films w ...
section at the
2022 Cannes Film Festival The 75th annual Cannes Film Festival is an upcoming film festival scheduled to take place from 17 to 28 May 2022. The festival will see a tribute to actor Tom Cruise, whose film '' Top Gun: Maverick'' is due to premiere at the festival. The off ...
. That year, she also starred in the well-received action thriller ''Kompromat'' directed by
Jérôme Salle Jérôme Salle (born 1971) is a French film director and screenwriter. Salle directed the films '' Anthony Zimmer'', the Belgian comic book adaptation ''Largo Winch'', and its sequel ''Largo Winch II''. His 2013 film '' Zulu'' was selected as th ...
. Kulig is set to star in
Rebecca Miller Rebecca Augusta Miller, Lady Day-Lewis (born September 15, 1962) is an American filmmaker and novelist. She is known for her films '' Angela'', '' Personal Velocity: Three Portraits'', ''The Ballad of Jack and Rose'', ''The Private Lives of Pipp ...
's romantic comedy ''
She Came to Me ''She Came to Me'' is a 2023 American romantic comedy film written and directed by Rebecca Miller. It stars Peter Dinklage, Marisa Tomei, Joanna Kulig, Brian d'Arcy James, and Anne Hathaway. It had its world premiere at the 73rd Berlin Internat ...
'' alongside
Anne Hathaway Anne Jacqueline Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American actress. The recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Anne Hathaway, various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Awar ...
,
Tahar Rahim Tahar Rahim (born 4 July 1981) is a Franco-Algerian actor. He is known for his starring role as Malik El Djebena in the 2009 award-winning French movie ''A Prophet'' by Jacques Audiard, FBI Agent Ali Soufan in ''The Looming Tower'', Judas in the ...
,
Marisa Tomei Marisa Tomei ( , ; born December 4, 1964) is an American actress. She came to prominence as a cast member on ''The Cosby Show'' spin-off ''A Different World'' in 1987. After having minor roles in a few films, she came to international attention ...
and
Matthew Broderick Matthew Broderick (born March 21, 1962) is an American actor. His roles include the Golden Globe-nominated portrayal of the title character in ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' (1986), the voice of adult Simba in Disney's ''The Lion King'' (1994), ...
, and in
Michael Keaton Michael John Douglas (born September 5, 1951), known professionally as Michael Keaton, is an American actor. He is known for his various comedic and dramatic film roles, including Jack Butler in ''Mr. Mom'' (1983), Betelgeuse in ''Beetlejuice'' ( ...
's noir thriller ''Knox Goes Away''. She will also make a guest appearance in the upcoming
Apple TV+ Apple TV is a digital media player and microconsole developed and marketed by Apple Inc. It is a small network appliance hardware that plays received media data such as video and audio to a television set or external display. Since its secon ...
miniseries ''
Masters of the Air ''Masters of the Air'' is an upcoming American war drama miniseries based on the actions of the Eighth Air Force of the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. It is being produced by Playtone, Parliament of Owls, Amblin Television an ...
''.


Personal life

In 2009, Kulig married film director and screenwriter Maciej Bochniak. She gave birth to their son in February 2019.


Acting credits


Film


Television


Stage


Radio


Awards and nominations


See also

*
Cinema of Poland The history of cinema in Poland is almost as long as the history of cinematography, and it has universally recognized achievements, even though Polish films tend to be less commercially available than films from several other European nations. Af ...
*
List of Poles This is a partial list of notable Polish or Polish-speaking or -writing people. People of partial Polish heritage have their respective ancestries credited. Science Physics * Czesław Białobrzeski * Andrzej Buras * Georges Charpak ...


Footnotes


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kulig, Joanna 1982 births 21st-century Polish actresses European Film Award for Best Actress winners Living people People from Krynica-Zdrój Polish film actresses Polish stage actresses Polish television actresses