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On 23 August 1939, Russia (USSR) and Nazi Germany signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact where they agreed to each take half of Poland. Despite Poland’s valiant participation on the side of the Allies in World War II, they were sold out at Yalta, left in the hands of Russia-USSR, and did not become free again until 1989.

The Unconquered Movie Press Pack Photo. The very short movie may be seen here http://www.theunconquered-movie.com or here: http://youtu.be/Q88AkN1hNYM

Background-explanation of most of the scenes in the movie The Unconquered, as found here: http://www.theunconquered-movie.com :
“Scenes
1 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact

On 23 August 1939, preparing for aggression against their neighbours and claiming the right to rule the whole world, two totalitarian states, communist Russia and Nazi Germany, signed one of the most criminal pacts in the history of mankind.


2 On the eve of the war

After 1935, the Germans began to implement the large-scale re-armament plans, therefore violating the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles that ended the First World War.


3. 1 September 1939 – the aggression of the Third Reich against Poland

Shortly before 5 am on 1 September 1939, the German military forces invaded Poland, carrying out Adolf Hitler’s plan. Since the very beginning, this act of aggression was performed in a very cruel way.

4. 17 September 1939 – the USSR’s aggression against Poland – a stab in the back
On 17 September 1939, when the Polish Army was fighting against the German Wehrmacht, the Red Army crossed the border into Poland without declaring war. Following the provisions of the secret Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, it occupied the eastern provinces of the country


5. Poland never capitulated


Poland was the first country in Europe to offer armed resistance to the Third Reich. Left alone by its allies, France and Great Britain, after exhausting combat, it gave in to the superior strength of the German Army.

6. Polish Underground State


The Poles did not resign themselves to the loss of their independent country. On 27 September 1939, the future structures of the Polish Underground State (Polskie Państwo Podziemne, PPP)


7. In the clutches of two occupiers


The authorities of the Third Reich planned to eliminate the Polish “leadership element” even before the outbreak of war. Proscription lists including 80,000 Poles designated for elimination were created.

8. Katyń Massacre


After 17 September 1939, 18,000 Polish Army officers were taken captive by the Soviets. Among them were both active and reserve officers, Border Protection Corps soldiers, policemen, prison service staff, military chaplains of different religious affiliation.


9. Deportations 

During the Second World War,
both occupiers followed a repressive policy towards the Polish citizens; one of its elements was forced deportations.


10. The Unwanted Ally — the Exodus of the Poles from the Inhuman Land 

In 1941,
after the Third Reich had invaded the Soviet Union, the latter agreed to sign an agreement with the Polish government in exile regarding formation of the Polish Army from Poles detained in Soviet POW camps and other camps (the Sikorski-Mayski Agreement of 30 July 1941).


11. The Polish Armed Forces in the West


The formation of the Polish Armed Forces (Polskie Siły Zbrojne, PSZ) in the West began immediately after the fiasco of the September Campaign. With France fallen to the Third Reich, most of the soldiers were evacuated to Great Britain and Palestine.


12. The Battle of Monte Cassino


The Nazi defeat at Stalingrad and in northern Africa facilitated the opening of the second front line on the European continent. By October 1943 the Allies had already seized southern Italy, including Naples.


13. The Polish Air Force


On 1 September 1939 the Polish Air Force faced a much more powerful enemy, both in terms of technology and quality of equipment. Luftwaffe sent more than two thousand aircraft to fight against Poland. The Polish pilots fought with great sacrifice for almost three weeks.


14. “Black Devils” – Gen. Maczek’s 1st Armoured Division 

“Black Devils” is a name for Polish soldiers who fought in World War II in Gen. Maczek’s 1st Armoured Division.


15. Special Force Paratroopers


After enrolling in the volunteer ‘national service’ and a cycle of specialist combat/intelligence training courses (including a paratrooper course and, depending on one’s tasks, training in unarmed combat, using various kinds of weapons, sabotage, communications, and intelligence),


16. Home Army Intelligence Service


The Service for Poland’s Victory (Służba Zwycięstwu Polski) was established on 27 September 1939, shortly before the capitulation of Warsaw. In November that year it was transformed into the Union of Armed Combat (Związek Walki Zbrojnej, ZWZ)
17. Warsaw Ghetto


The Warsaw Ghetto was a quarter created for the Jewish people on 2 October 1940 in Warsaw by the German occupation authorities and isolated from the rest of the city on 16 November 1940.


18. Poles rescuing Jews


During the Second World War, some Polish organisations and individuals were helping the Jewish people sentenced to death by Germans. Poland (since 15 October 1941)


19. KL Auschwitz – the German concentration camp


Since the seizure of power in 1933, the leaders of the Nazi Germany were bringing terror to their political opponents and groups they considered useless or racially subordinate.


20. Jan Karski’s missions


After the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, Jan Karski (born Jan Kozielewski on 24 April 1914 in Łódź; died on 13 July 2000 in Washington, D.C.) was taken prisoner but soon managed to escape.


21. Warsaw Ghetto Uprising


The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was an armed rebellion led by several hundred members of the Jewish resistance.


22. Operation Tempest


In the autumn of 1943, the Home Army general, Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski, convinced the Polish government-in-exile that it was necessary to take action.

23. Warsaw Uprising


At the “W-hour” (5 pm) on 1 August 1944, the Home Army commander in chief, General Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski, gave orders to begin the Warsaw Uprising as part of Operation Tempest.
24. „Enigma”


Enigma was a technically advanced cipher machine invented by the German engineer Arthur Scherbius, who patented it in 1918. After several years, it became the most important cipher machine in the German Army


25. Yalta Conference
Towards the end of the war, on 4 February 1945, the Big Three held a conference in Yalta, Crimea, attended by UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill, USA President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and USSR dictator Joseph Stalin.


26. The end of World War II – Victory Parade without Polish soldiers


The leaders of the major victorious allied states on most fronts of the war: The United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union, in early 1945 met at Yalta.


27. Cursed soldiers


The “cursed soldiers” is a term used to describe members of anti-communist armed forces fighting for the independence of Poland, which found itself in the USSR sphere of interests after the Second World War.


28. Crises in the Polish People’s Republic


After the end of the Second World War and as a result of the decisions of the Big Three made at the Yalta Conference, Poland found itself in the USSR sphere of interests


29. Pope’s visit in 1979


On 16 October 1978, Cardinal Karol Wojtyła was elected Pope and adopted the name of John Paul II. The new pope wanted to visit Poland as soon as possible.


30. Carnival of “Solidarity”


The Carnival of “Solidarity”, or the Carnival of Democracy and Freedom, was a period of 16 months (from late August 1980 to 13 December 1981) during which the Independent Self-Governing Labour Union “Solidarity” enjoyed legal activity in a non-independent country.


31. Martial law


On the night of 13 December 1981, the communist authorities in Poland declared martial law, breaking even the communist laws.


32. The fall of communism and regaining of freedom


Although the imposition of martial law in Poland on 13 December 1981 crushed Poles’ hope for overthrowing the communist dictatorship for many years, the economic catastrophe…

” http://www.theunconquered-movie.com. http://ipn.gov.pl/en/news/954,039The-Unconquered039-premiere.html

Excerpted from the News Release: http://ipn.gov.pl/en/news/954,039The-Unconquered039-premiere.html
“News Release:
Warsaw, 15th September 2017

The Institute of National Remembrance, Fish Ladder and Juice present “The Unconquered” – an animated film that shows the fight of Poles for freedom, from the first day of World War II to the fall of communism in 1989. English narrator – Sean Bean, Polish – Mirosław Zbrojewicz.

– With this film we wish to launch an international educational campaign aimed at presenting the Polish, historical perspective on the key events of 1939-1989. I feel that with “The Unconquered” we have restored the perspective of General Anders’ soldiers of II Corps. That is, the relentless struggle for Poland’s freedom – says Adam Hlebowicz, deputy director of the Institute’s National Education Office. – This is a voice of a sovereign state that had the fourth largest army in the war, suffered the greatest losses and was the only one to fight in the conflict from the first to the last day. Without the Polish perspective one cannot fully understand the course and consequences of World War II, he adds.

The film’s premiere will be held before the 78th anniversary of Soviet invasion and will show the key moments of Poles’ fifty year long fight for freedom. These efforts will be presented by a character, who on one hand is a universal symbol of the struggle, and on the other, refers to iconic historical figures such as Capt. Witold Pilecki, Irena Sendler or Witold Urbanowicz. Some of the heroes appear for the first time in film: Gen. Stanisław Maczek, Jan Karski or Marian Rejewski.
[….]
– Our thinking about the film and our early work on its conception were founded on the idea that the war did not end in 1945 for everybody. – says Rafał Pękała, project coordinator of the Institute’s National Education Office. – It was our intention to emphasise how unjustly was Poland treated, but primarily how undervalued were the efforts of Polish soldiers, who heroically fought for the country’s freedom and that of the whole world, and who were not invited to the victory parade. Our allies never apologised, while for the Poles the end of the war brought another occupation, and thus another 45 years of fight, after “the war ended”. The fils is thus meant to show historical truth in a modern and at the same time symbolic manner. The film has an enormous educational potential, which we would like to utilise in the different projects of eh National Education Bureau. The animation marvellously and synthetically shows Poland’s road to freedom from 1939 to 1989, a road of the Accursed Soldiers, the pro-independence opposition and of Solidarity, he adds.

The film is presented in three languages – English, Polish, and Russian. It is available on the following sites: http://www.theunconquered-movie.com, http://www.niezwyciezeni.ipn.gov.pl/, http://www.niezwyciezeni-film.pl.

…. The Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation is a public institution whose main tasks include: the study and popularisation of Poland’s recent history, administration of the archives of the security services of the communist state and prosecution of Nazi and communist crimes. One of the most important tasks of the Institute is spreading the knowledge of contemporary history. The Institute organises school classes, workshops for teachers, lectures, seminars, competitions and foot excursions. More and more frequently, the Institute uses modern multimedia: documentaries, animation, presentations that support historical education…..” Emphasis our own. See the entire news release here: http://ipn.gov.pl/en/news/954,039The-Unconquered039-premiere.html
More info here: http://ipn.gov.pl
English here: http://ipn.gov.pl/en