Just Beyond That Forest

During the occupation, little Rutka (Joanna Friedman) is sent out of the ghetto to hide with the family of the washerwoman Kulgawcowa (Ryszarda Hanin). The woman agrees to take the girl under her wing for a fee, although she herself struggles with her own prejudices and tensions in her relationship with her adult daughter (Marta Klubowicz). The journey to the village is not easy – on the train, Rutka and Kulgawcowa encounter passengers with various intentions: some are kind, others threaten their safety. Among them lurks a blackmailer demanding ransom, and for the first time, the girl must learn to trust an adult to survive. In the village, Rutka experiences daily life outside the city, although dangers are still present: children playing “Germans” remind her of the brutal reality of war. The little heroine, though in hiding, carries with her the memory of her family in the form of photographs and memories, which become her only link to the past. The film tells a story of courage and loyalty in a world where every move can mean survival, and the line between good and evil is hard to grasp.