The competition for the design of the headquarters of the CAMERIMAGE European Film Center in Toruń, decided this summer, received more than a hundred applications. One of them was a proposal prepared jointly by the Finnish office Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects (Rainer Mahlamäki, Jukka Savolainen) and the Polish studio MXCF Archite cts (Marta Chrzanowska, Marcin Ferenc, Michał Pawlak). The mass designed by the international team (in cooperation with Ilkka Paloniemi, Nina Vehviläinen and Natalia Wozniak) is distinguished by a gentle arc that determines its shape, creates an urban interior and a facade that acts as a huge screen.
A representative square of organic shape with a stage in a hollow is planned 
between the ECFC and the CKK Jordanki building a representative square of organic shape with a stage in a hollow has been planned
© Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects, MXCF Architects
The ECFC building is written out in an irregular projection, thanks to which it is supposed to blend harmoniously into the diverse development of the quarter and the immediate surroundings of the plot. Although the body itself has not been separated into smaller parts by the architects, the building, according to the designers' assumptions, should not dominate the area, but unite the entire quarter.
The overall geometry of the Festival Center's projection, by inscribing the massive mass into gently vibrating facades, allows the large-scale building to fit naturally into its surroundings. Only the film studio, which is the first stage of the project, was separated as a heavier cuboid, matching in shape and material to the ceramic facades of the development on the southern side of the plot, the architects explain.
On the roof, the architects planned a meadow and an off-road auditorium
© Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects, MXCF Architects
The building is enclosed on three sides by the aforementioned "vibrating" facades - zigzagging louvers of white ceramic and etched glass, while the facade (made of etched glass with LED matrix), is to act as a screen and mark the presence of the festival in the space of Toruń.
The front façade of the Festival Center has been drawn in a single gesture along an arc, from south to north, thus outlining the shape of a new urban interior - the festival square. This façade, located at the end of the promenade leading from Solidarności Avenue, like a silver screen awaiting a film projection, attracts and invites viewers inside, the project's authors explain the premise. - The designed curvature of the facade - a bright screen - creates a subtle, neutral background for the Jordanki Cultural and Congress Center, the architects add.
The 
the façade is to serve as a screen and constitute a sign of the festival's presence in the space of Toruń
© Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects, MXCF Architects
Planned between the body of the ECFC and the CKK Jordanki building, the representative square of organic shape with an open-air stage in the hollow, combined with the foyer, is to be a space for year-round events and a meeting place. The foyer itself is separated from other zones by an openwork partition - it is, according to the architects, a space of diffused light, a zone of concentration through which the viewer moves from the bright bustling square and everyday life to a secret zone created by the film.
The designers aimed to create a clear and intuitive layout of communication between the various functions - the main hall of the foyer, led in a gentle wave from south to north, thus connects all areas of the Festival Center (the market, the ECFC offices, the education zone located above the market), from the south it also provides access to the film studio, and from the north to the cinema halls and the museum. The heart of the premise is the ECFC's main hall.
site development plan
© Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects, MXCF Architects
Along the west elevation, facing the park, a ramp has been designed to lead to the roof, which the architects stress is intended to be a natural continuation of the green ring surrounding the Festival Center. The fifth elevation of the building, intended for recreational purposes, is to be overgrown by a meadow.
The results of the competition can be found here.
In the #Rejected Salon series, we also presented the competition projects of WXCA, P2PA, MWM Architects and nsMoonStudio offices.
