"Pride and betrayal" is a story of the choices of man made in the face of important historical events. Essential for the film are obscure events of the Second World War. The matter of both, embarrassing collaboration of the Highlanders known as Góralenvolk and activity of the Tatra Confederation and Szarota troops, is still a great challenge for historians, publishers and filmmakers. The authors managed to reach unique accounts of those, whose families suffered, often sorely, of the history.

Artistic value of the film and its emotional message are reinforced by feature scenes of reconstruction groups and by expressive images. It is not only fascinating history lesson, but also remarkable, universal image showing a thin boundary between pride and betrayal. The authors decided to show Góralenvolk phenomenon in the context of families and descendants of those, who were involved in collaboration with the Nazis. They also talk about the resistance movement in Podhale, including the activities of Tatra Confederation.

- This topic is unpopular in Podhale, because the highlanders are ashamed. Neverthless highlanders came out of this unscathed - after all, they set up Tatra Confederation and other movements to fight against internal collaboration. In the film, we compare these two realities - says director Mirosław Krzyszkowski - Above all, we show Góralenvolk through the perspective of families involved in this phenomenon, often woeful and still reliving this history. Wojciech Szatkowski is a historian in the Tatra Museum, his grandfather was a traitor, but the grandmother was not - their marriage was divided. And this happened also in Krzeptowski family.

The film is a joint effort of Mirosław Krzyszkowski, Dariusz Walusiak and Bogdan  Wasztyl. These artists have already made realizations of religious, historical and social matters. Such broad range of interests makes the message of the work highly particular and universal.

Shooting for the film were carried out in Zakopane, Nowy Targ, Chochołów and Wachowa Pasture. The feature scenes involved several dozen people, mostly members of the Association of Historical Reconstructions "Błyskawica" and "17. INFANTERIE  DIVISION". Great support we had from the Tatra Museum and its employee Wojciech Szatkowski, who was the historical consultant in our film. In cooperation with the National Digital Archives we reached the extraordinary archives, which never have been published yet. For exemple we used such fragments of radio broadcasts in which Albert Krzeptowski explained that the Highlanders have Germanic roots - adds Bogdan Wasztyl, producer of the film.

The screenings will be accompanied by the conference "At Giewont - in the grip of two totalitarian regimes 1939 -1956" containing several lectures. Dr. Maciej Korkuć of IPN will talk about Góralenvolk and Tatra Confederation as two different attitudes of the highlanders during the Second World War. "Independence activity of highland youth after the Second World War" - a lecture of associate prof. Grzegorz Baziura of the Jagiellonian University. MA Zbigniew Klima of Witold Pilecki State Higher Vocational School in Oświęcim will give a lecture entitled "Oral history - how to build a civil society on the example of the project At Giewont - in the grip of two totalitarian regimes 1939 -1956." Teresa M. Szakiel of the Małopolska Teacher Training Centre take care of the matter how to build the memory of small homelands.

Title: PRIDE AND BETRAYAL
Running time: 43 min
Script: Mirosław Krzyszkowski, Dariusz Walusiak, Bogdan Wasztyl
Realisation: Mirosław Krzyszkowski, Dariusz Walusiak
Production: Bogdan Wasztyl
Camera Operator: Mirosław Krzyszkowski, Dariusz Walusiak, Zbigniew Klima
Editing: Mirosław Krzyszkowski, Dariusz Walusiak
Music: Mirosław Krzyszkowski
Sound: Michał Mastykarz
Historical Advice: Wojciech Szatkowski, Barbara Wasztyl
Documentation: Barbara Wasztyl, Zbigniew Klima
Production Manager: Anna Gil, Paulina Wądrzyk
Location Manager: Paulina Wądrzyk
Reader: Jakub Kosiniak
Still Photographs: Paulina Wądrzyk
Translation: Anna Niedziela

TV broadcast:

• TVP Kraków – January 2012
• TVP Historia – January 2012

Public displays:

• 12.12.2011 – Nowy Targ, the conference room of the town council, 11 a.m.
• 13.12.2011 – Zakopane, ”Sokół” Cinema, 11 a.m.
• January 2012 – Zakopane, Dworzec Tatrzański pub (with cooperation of the Tatra Museum).

Archives of:

• National Digital Archives in Warsaw
• Institute of National Remembrance, Department in Kraków
• Museum of the History of Photography in Kraków
• The Tatra Museum in Zakopane
• Zofia Fortecka
• Henryk Josta

Producers wish to thank the following for their assistance:

• Dr. Nikodem Bończy Tomaszewski, director of the National Digital Archives in Warsaw
• Teresa Jabłońska, director of the Tatra Museum
• Wojciech Szatkowski, the Tatra Museum
• Dr. Maciej Korkuć (Institute of National Remembrance in Kraków)
• Association of Historical Reconstructions "Błyskawica" 
• Krzysztof Musielak and Historical Reconstruction Group “17. INFANTERIE DIVISION”

Auschwitz Memento Association, 2011