Two mermaid sisters swim from the sea into a Warsaw nightclub in what could be the 80s. They are wild, beautiful and sexy, and hungry for life. While becoming stars practically overnight, one of them falls in love with a handsome young bass player. This will question their sisterly bonds to the limit and will have them make often cruel and bloody choices.

THE LURE is a genre hybrid. It’s a love story, a musical but also a reverie fantasy horror. And an adult fairy tale. I was mostly inspired by the kitschy world of big dance hall parties from the Communist era which ended when I was about 12. The weird, lost characters, the warm vodka, the glamour amidst poverty – that is what my imagination was soaked with. Especially that my Mom ran two restaurants during that not-so-belle époque. THE LURE is also a coming-of-age story about discovering your feminine side, your sexuality and using it for a sometimes controversial purpose. I was much more inspired by Homer than Disney in terms of a mermaid tale. Also a little bit by Hans Christian Andersen, however, my mermaids do not wear bras. They do chew on human hearts though.

Agnieszka Smoczyńska - graduate of Culture Studies and Film Directing at the Radio & TV Department of the University of Silesia in Katowice, also took part in Agnieszka Holland’s, Andrzej Wajda’s, and Wojciech Marczewski’s master classes at the Andrzej Wajda Film School. Author of TV theatre shows, award-winning short documentaries and live action films, THE LURE is her feature debut.
The Sydney FF, Variety, and European Film Promotion (EFP) invited Agnieszka Smoczyńska to take part in the 2016 edition of their joint project “European Cinema: 10 Women Filmmakers to Watch”.

Filmography:
2010 - VIVA MARIA, short
2007 - ARIA DIVA, short