“LARP” debuted as a short film, which focused on the young hero's escape into a world of fantasy, noble warriors and damsels in distress. The main role was played by Marcel Borowiec, who brilliantly presented the vision of a teenager who cannot quite find his way in the real world. One of the most important roles was played by Bartłomiej Topa, who plays the main character's idol. But what is a LARP movie without real LARPers? We managed to talk to one of them!
Bartłomiej Topa has recently gained the attention and admiration of viewers thanks to his role in the series “1670”, which debuted on Netflix last year. A humorous production about the Polish nobility, ridiculing national vices, amused Poland and both both the director and Topa made the audience fall in love with each other. Now the duo returns in a new version.
On the set of the film “LARP” we had the opportunity to meet Bartłomiej Topa, who plays the role of Louis Lacroix. Have you had the opportunity to experience LARP as a form of spending free time before? As it turns out, not necessarily, but as he himself notes, it is entertainment for people of all ages. And who is Lacroix in the world of Sergius – the main character of the film?
“Louis Lacroix is a writer whose books make kids play and run through the forests and dress up. It's fantastic. To paraphrase another hero, 'I am Sergius' idol'”.
AND what prompted the actor to take on such a role? Bartłomiej Topa puts great emphasis on the message conveyed by this production.
“The film touches on many topics, in many areas, on many levels. I was fascinated by the dynamics of the text (…) how these young people perceive reality and the world, (…) how easy it is to create their future with our actions as adults. “What's fascinating is that we can get to know their world through the eyes of young people.”
Kordian Kądziela decided to use it help from real experts from the LARP world. We managed to talk to one of the extras, Piotr Müller, who has not only been participating in LARPs for years, but also immortalizes the players' actions in photos.
– What was it like to appear on the set of this film?
– Quite pleasant, especially since it is the first event this season, so we also treat it as an opportunity to meet. We feel like we're at LARP.”
And what did Piotr's preparations for participating in the film look like? As it turns out, the whole thing involved… reaching into the closet. Interestingly, there are also funny stories associated with disguises when outsiders meet players or current extras for the first time.
“People usually look at us very strangely, some people ask a lot of questions.”
For more answers and behind-the-scenes information from the world of LARP, check out our full conversationwhich you can listen to below.
Apart from the debuting Filip Zaręba, we will also see: Martyna Byczkowska and Maciej Bisiorek, Agnieszka Rajda, Mikołaj Chilimończyk, Andrzej Konopka, Michał Balicki, Hubert Łapacz, Filip Łannik, Magdalena Góźdź and Edyta Olszówka.