Monika Czajkowska

I am applying because I need to find a new direction for my artistic endeavours. Over the past five years, I have worked full-time while successfully combining employment with directing plays, playwriting and other artistic activities. Currently, I am a freelancer without a steady income, which makes me feel empty and fearful for the future. However, deep down, I believe that life’s changes are for the better. The challenge for me is knowing how to navigate this situation. I believe that the WOK residency, its experts and its community of participants can help me with this by shedding new light on my creative path. 

I understand this year’s slogan, “resilience”, as the ability to regenerate, which in my case means regaining faith in my own agency. 

I want to take some time for myself to reconsider what I want from my artistic and professional life. This is the first time I have applied for a residency without expecting any specific artistic outcomes. This is the first time I have applied for a residency without expecting specific artistic outcomes. My goal is to enjoy the process itself, during which I hope to recognise my strengths and develop a new approach to my work. I believe that, as part of a group, I will learn to be more flexible and open to uncertainty. I also hope to learn how to release physical tension. Although I practise yoga and am familiar with BMC and many other methods, they have recently become ineffective, so I need to explore this area again. I am also keen to build a support network, which I currently lack. I am open to collaborating with others to develop a model that empowers artists and individuals in other professions who are not in permanent employment, providing them with a sense of certainty amidst uncertainty. In a sense, this will be an extension of my work at university, where I helped students enter the job market. Today, I myself need help in this area. From my experience ‘on the other side’, I know that it is much easier to gain a new perspective on one’s work when someone accompanies us through the process.  

One question that troubles me is how to live in the present moment in an uncertain artistic environment when we cannot fully immerse ourselves in creative activity because we have to keep in mind the need to secure future projects. If I could find an answer to this question during the residency, I would develop a kind of “vaccine” to immunise freelancers against uncertainty, benefiting many people. 

Apart from providing an opportunity for reflection and development of my own practice, I also hope that the residency will give me a chance to catch my breath. 

I am a theatre and film director, playwright, screenwriter, academic lecturer, and copyright specialist. I am currently pursuing a PhD in Film and Television Directing at the PWSFTviT in Lodz. I graduated from the Film School in Łódź, the Faculty of Artes Liberales at the University of Warsaw, and the Ivan Vyrypaev Theatre School. I have received several scholarships, including the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage scholarships ‘Culture on the Web’ and ‘Young Poland’ in the field of film, as well as the Gdańsk Cultural Scholarship. My work lies at the intersection of theatre and film, and I have recently expanded my creative activities to include video art and performance. I subject my practical activities to theoretical reflection. 

I won the Pomeranian Province Marshal’s Award for the script and direction of the play Podejdź bliżej (Come Closer), as well as the 3rd Audience Award in the MONOTEATR #wdomu competition for the monodrama film Ofelia. Działanie (nie)będzie potępione (Ophelia. The Action (Will Not) Be Condemned). I also won the 34th Theatre Art Competition for Children and Youth, organised by the Children’s Art Centre in Poznań. For this competition, I wrote the play Wychowanie fizyczne (Physical Education), which reached the semi-finals of the 17th Gdynia Drama Award.  As a director, screenwriter and playwright, I have collaborated with many theatres in Poland. I have also written plays and worked as a dramaturge for other artists’ performances. I have created numerous short audiovisual pieces, both original and commissioned. 

In my free time, I practise yoga and explore urban spaces. 

I applied for the residency to develop tools that would reduce the uncertainty faced by freelance artists. However, I realised that little can be done at an individual level. The only effective solutions are systemic. Unfortunately, I have no influence over that. Unfortunately.

What is it like to be a freelancer? Either you have no work at all, or you work from morning till night. People might as you, ‘Why do you take on so much?’ You could answer:

‘Because I love my work!’

As an artist, my work has no boundaries.

I want to make a name for myself.

I’m good at multitasking…

(Other)

The honest answer, however, is FEAR. Fear that if you don’t take on another project, you won’t have an income. Artistic projects often don’t pay well and there are limited opportunities available.

When I applied for the WOK residency, I was unemployed. The stipend allowed me to survive, as I had enough money to cover my accommodation costs. Suddenly, I had a lot of work (I still haven’t been paid for most of it…). From September to November, I directed three projects and wrote two scripts: a television theatre, a large outdoor event, and a play. I also gave a presentation at a conference, participated in a panel at an industry event and led a scriptwriting workshop for teachers. Post-production on the television theatre play is ongoing. I have to write one more play by the end of the year.

How do I feel? Tired, because I’m getting older and my body is finding it harder and harder to keep up with my pace. Do I feel successful or fulfilled? No, even though the things I do are well-received. Why? Because 2026 is looking bleak. I only have a handful of projects on the horizon. Even though I give so much of myself, it doesn’t translate into new jobs. I’m unsure how to cope with such uncertainty. Yet, I am not the only one affected by the system; all artists and freelancers have to deal with it. I am not ashamed to admit that I don’t know the answer. I believe we need to discuss it openly.

I am grateful for the residency and the opportunity to meet interesting people and exchange ideas. It is comforting to feel that we are all in this sick system together (i.e., it is not my fault). As I have already mentioned, I also feel fear. I feel anxious when there are no projects on the horizon, as well as when there are too many. I am afraid that one day I will not be able to cope and drop out altogether, although I am not sure if I am in it at all.