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Altar Boys
Ministranci

Director(s): Piotr DomalewskiPL110 min.2025
Categoriesfiction
Accessibilitynot suitable for minors under 15 years of age
Content descriptorsviolence, discrimination, dependency, vulgarisms
LanguagesPolish (orig.)
SubtitlesEnglish, slovak
Black and white / colourcolor

Nominated for FIPRESCI Award

A small Polish town and four friends who serve as altar boys at the local church, each carrying burdens of their own. Filip’s mother struggles with depression and alcoholism, while Gucci’s parents are consumed by wealth and have little time for their son. One day, while cleaning the church, the boys hide inside the confessional and accidentally overhear several deeply personal confessions. Later, they witness the theft of church donations, which end up in the pocket of one of the priests. Determined to do good and ensure the money reaches those who truly need it, they take matters into their own hands. Installing a hidden camera inside the confessional, they begin monitoring who might deserve help the most. Wearing masks, they anonymously deliver envelopes of cash accompanied by messages claiming the aid comes from the church. But their radical actions trigger a chain of dramatic events that expose social hypocrisy and moral passivity, while also revealing courage and a refusal to surrender to injustice and evil.

At the Polish Film Festival, the film won the Golden Lions Grand Prize, as well as the Best Screenplay Award and the Audience Award.

Cast: Tobiasz Wajda, Bruno Błach-Baar, Mikołaj Juszczyk, Filip Juszczyk, Daria Kalinchuk, Kamila Urzędowska, Tomasz Schuchardt, Sławomir Orzechowski, Artur Paczesny

Sales: Sales: Aurum Film

CSFD.cz IMDb trailer
Projection of Altar Boys at IFF ART FILM 2026
International Competition of Central and Eastern European Films
145 seats available
208 seats available
* Program subject to change