“‘The Witcher’ has broken cultural stereotypes about Poles in the West. It is like a teaser in cinematography. We need more such teasers that encourage people to learn about the real Poland and the real history of Poland,” says Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki in his weekly podcast.
In a podcast published on social media on Sunday, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki spoke about the ‘The Witcher’ series, the game and Andrzej Sapkowski’s prose on which it was based. The Prime Minister appreciated the importance of the work in terms of breaking cultural stereotypes about Poles in the West. The ‘Witcher’ series proved to be a kind of teaser, which aroused the interest of many viewers and prompted them to explore Polish culture and history.
Prime Minister Morawiecki, who recently returned from Brussels after important talks at the European Council, stressed that the problem of uncontrolled illegal migration is a serious challenge for Europe. The headache associated with this issue has motivated him to look for ways to rest and relax. For the Prime Minister, the best ways to relax are books and films. Before his trip to Brussels, he had already learned that the third season of the series The Witcher on Netflix would premiere on Thursday. Although he couldn’t afford to marathon the series all day, he watched the first episode on his return, hoping to continue watching whenever the opportunity arose.
During the podcast, the Prime Minister expressed his views on the discussion regarding fidelity to Mr Sapkowski’s original stories. The Prime Minister was aware that this topic is very controversial among Polish fans, as well as game fans around the world, especially with the new season of the series. Adaptations are rarely able to satisfy fans of the original. Even the best scriptwriters, directors, actors, costumes, set design and special effects cannot match human imagination. As the well-known saying goes: “no one has yet been born who can satisfy everyone”. The Prime Minister encouraged greater forbearance and understanding of the process of adapting a literary work to the screen.
Prime Minister Morawiecki pointed out that Polish culture is extremely rich, but at the same time complex, full of context which is not familiar to the Western world. We have been cut off from this world for many years. This is why it is important to introduce ‘teasers’ such as the Witcher series, which will attract the attention of international audiences and encourage them to learn about the authentic aspects of Polish history and culture.
Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki concluded his podcast by emphasising that such cultural initiatives have the potential to enrich and strengthen mutual relations between Poland and other countries and to show the real Poland to the world, beyond stereotypes and prejudices. He is convinced that by promoting Polish artistic works such as ‘The Witcher’, we can contribute to building bridges of understanding and mutual understanding between nations.