Report by Richard LeParmentier and Lukasz Mlotkowski
Back in 2007
Star Wars came to Poland for the first time, and since then our intrepid
Admiral has made a point of honouring the commitment and dedication of
the Polish fans by visiting the country on two occasions...
So it was with
great excitement and eagerness that Richard and his good friend Kenneth
Colley took to the skies and returned to a much loved convention
location - Poland...
Saturday
12th September 2009
Richard
LeParmentier, Admiral Motti, A New Hope
Richard
- "There are conventions and there are Conventions!
I’ve just got back from Torun in Poland. Ken Colley [Admiral Piett] and
I were guests of the city of Torun’s first Star Force convention
celebrating the 30th Anniversary of Star Wars in Poland."
the empire
took control of the torun streets
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
ponda baba
was determined to prove the beatles wrong - he was the
walrus...
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
Lukasz
Mlotkowski, co-organiser of StarForce 2009
Lukasz - "Celebrating
the 30th anniversary of Star Wars in Poland, the StarForce 2009
convention became an outstanding success, with the number of
participants ten times greater than our expectations!
Members of the 501st Legion Polish Garrison led the colourful parade
through the streets of Torun, stopping by a famous landmark - the
Nicolaus Copernicus statue. After a brief introduction by Polish
Garrison’s Cezary Zolynski, inhabitants of Torun and tourists were
greeted by representatives of local government - among them the
President of Torun, Mr Michal Zaleski. It was then turn for our star
guests - Imperial Admirals Kenneth Colley and Richard LeParmentier – to
encourage the crowds to participate in our event."
torun welcomes the arrival of the imperial
army
photograph by michal guzewski
Richard - "Torun
is a beautiful city, medieval, 18th and 19th century architecture on
beautiful squares rightly make it a UN World Heritage City. Most
importantly it’s the hometown of Copernicus, the astronomer who first
posited the theory that the sun was the center of the universe."
motti and
piett oversee the empire's invasion of torun...
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
Richard
- "The morning before the event began we had coffee with Marshal of the
Torun District, everyone was wearing Star Force t-shirts. We then
met with local school children who had done fabulous pictures on Star
Wars themes."
richard and
kenneth greet the crowds
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
Richard - "Next
came the parade, led by a brass band playing the Imperial March, then
the Polish Garrison, then Ken and I and an amazing 4000 fans marched to
the center of the square to the foot of Copernicus’ statue where we were
introduced by
Cezary, the former Polish Garrison CO
- the hardest working Star Wars fan
I’ve ever met. He acted as MC for the entire day - his energy is
boundless."
richard and
lukasz mlotkowski address the crowds
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
Richard
- "We proceeded to The Centre of Contemporary Art where the world
of Star Wars took over the whole ground floor.
Ken and I signed autographs for fans and watched some events and were
pleased to see the Jabba model who had come all the way from Belgium by
courtesy of the Belgian Legion. It was last seen at Celebration Europe."
a stunning kulesza brothers millennium falcon
photograph by michal guzewski
Lukasz
- "The
Centre for Contemporary Art in Torun, the main convention venue, was
literally stormed, much to surprise of the staff, who were forced to
open the building earlier. Convention helpers, members of local Star
Wars fanclubs, did their best to prepare all the attractions on time.
Multimedia panels took place in the Centre's screening room, and
included a presentation by Staszek Maderek, well-known Polish actor and
director, and screening of Krypta, the most popular Polish Star Wars
fanfilm. This was also where the much-anticipated Q&A panel with Mr
Colley and Mr LeParmentier took place."
jabba the
hutt- clearly a plan of the atkins diet...
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
Lukasz
- "The
convention building also housed a room dedicated to Star Wars models and
memorabilia, among them the Star Destroyer and Millennium Falcon by the
Kulesza brothers. This was also a rare opportunity to see an almost
complete set of Polish bootleg Star Wars figures. During the convention
we’ve also been approached by fans, who asked us if they can put up
their own Star Wars paintings! People who came half-way across Poland,
whom we’ve never met before, trusted us with their creations.
Incredible!"
jabba - not
impressed at bib fortuna's latest choice of
dancing girl
photograph by michal guzewski
Lukasz
- "Thanks
to the efforts put forward by members of the Belgian Garrison, we were
also able to display a scene from Jabba the Hutt's palace, which quickly
became a popular photo opportunity. Complete with the big boss of crime
himself, was the kowakian monkey-lizard we all love - Salacious Crumb -
and the adorable frog-dog Bubo."
a gorgeous
model star destroyer by the brothers kulesza
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
Richard - "We
were very impressed with the models built by the Kulesza brothers.
They had built a Star Destroyer and Millennium Falcon model that were
the best we’ve seen outside the ones built for the original films."
Lukasz
- "However,
it was the stage put up outside of the Centre building by members of the
Polish Garrison that was the most active area of the convention. PG
troopers prepared over five hours of programme, featuring presentations
of Imperial military gear, trivia and games for the youngest
participants. That and the proximity of the Centre’s restaurant serving
beer made this attraction a favourite for many a visitor.
The troopers returned for the duel between Lord Vader and Master
Twardowski, a play written by Polish Garrison member and Osterwa Theatre
actor, Cezary Zolynski. The story concentrated on Twardowski, Polish
nobleman and sorcerer, who was offered to join the Dark Side by the
Emperor himself. Twardowski learns about Anakin Skywalker and ultimately
faces Dark Lord. However, though strong in the Force, the Sith appear to
be no match for Twardowski's wife..."
Richard
- "Ken and I did a Q&A with the excellent help of
Lukasz Mlotkowski,
our translator and one
of the organizers of Star Force.
At the end of the Q&A we were presented with two magnums of champagne in
boxes custom made by the Kulesza brothers.
This was a very touching gesture indeed."
kenneth and richard, both deeply touched by
their beautiful gifts
photograph by michal guzewski
Lukasz
- "To
wrap up the day in style, we all went down to the Lizard King pub to
chat and share a drink. Our official StarForce 2009 after party was the
perfect occasion to get to know your fellow Star Wars fans and swap
stories with our guests. With a reasonable amount of the Force coursing
through our veins, we quickly took over the dance floor and partied
until early morning."
richard and
kenneth accept some typical polish hospitality
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
Lukasz
- "StarForce
2009 would not have been possible without people who decided to help us,
even though there was no guarantee of success. A huge thank you goes to
Lucasfilm's Steve Sansweet – thanks to him our event got the recognition
no other Polish Star Wars convention previously had. We are also
grateful to our international guests for accepting our invitation, and
to various collectors and modellers, who were kind enough to trust us
with their treasures. And last but not least, words of praise go to the
Polish Garrison and Star Wars fanclubs from Bydgoszcz and Torun for all
their hard work!"
coffee's all
round
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
richard
discusses yet another exciting polish adventures with his
hosts
photograph by
radoslaw
worek
Sunday 13th
September 2009
Richard - "The
next day, Sunday was given over to the Polish Garrison of the 501st
Legion, led by their CO, Arkadiusz Szajek, we dedicated Obi Wan Kenobi
Street in a suburb of Torun. We were invited into a
beautiful house on Obi Wan Street where we met Leszek Budkiewioz and his
lovely wife,
Kasia.
We then proceeded to enjoy a Polish tradition - feasting and vodka
toasts. I’m real fan of Polish cuisine and this feast had some of the
best Polish food I’ve had since childhood meals at my best friend’s
house. I can’t pronounce the dishes but it was all delicious."
public health warning - too much polish beer
can do this to you...
photograph by michal guzewski
Lukasz
- "For
me StarForce 2009 was one crazy ride, and being part of the experience
truly was an honour. People have been asking, if there's going to be a
StarForce convention next year. Well, let me leave you with a spoiler -
next year’s the 30th anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back in Poland...
Stay tuned!"
the crowds admiring the vast collection of
polish star wars memorabilia...
photograph by michal guzewski
Richard
- "I had without doubt the best hospitality I’ve ever experienced at a
fan conventions. The welcome and the friendship we were shown was just
fantastic.
I hope that Star Force becomes a permanent fixture. It was brilliantly
organized and generated a real sense of fun for all the fans who
attended."
