On My Own Terms | WATCH DOCS

With his signature sensitivity, Tadeusz Chudy captures the coming of age of an extraordinary pair of siblings. Paweł, who inherited his boxer’s build from his Nigerian father, trains for a fighting career, while Julka, an incorrigible rebel, searches for her place in the world. They live in a children’s home, but adulthood looms, demanding difficult choices and new beginnings. Their shared dream is independence, and to live together once Julka inherits an apartment. Torn between dreams and reality, the two must learn what it truly means to live on their own terms. There’s plenty of fighting in this story: in Paweł’s bouts, filmed with intimacy by the director himself, and in the daily struggles of growing up. Triumphs and setbacks, emotions and surprises, everything unfolds here as it does in life itself. 

Konrad Wirkowski