A film about the life of Pope John Paul II is among five movies with Catholic themes which will be showcased at the eighth annual Polish Film Festival Los Angeles from April 26 to May 3.

The week-long event featuring outstanding achievements of Polish cinema, including 24 full-length features, six documentaries, two animations and six short films, will take place at the Laemmle's Sunset 5 Theatre in Los Angeles.

Festival highlights include the West Coast premiere of "Karol. The Pope, The Man" (in English) with Piotr Adamczyk as John Paul II, the world premiere of "A Reverend Father Tischner and His Highlanders' Philosophy" and the American premiere of a Polish-Chinese co-production "The Lovers of the Year of the Tiger."

An invitation-only opening night gala at the Directors Guild of America Theatre Complex April 26 will be attended by the First Lady of the Republic of Poland, Madam Maria Kaczynska; Poland's Ambassador to the U.S., Janusz Reiter; and American director David Lynch.

The Festival screening of "Karol. The Pope, The Man" by Giacomo Battiato will take place on April 28 at 11 a.m. The film follows several characters whose lives were shaped and influenced by John Paul II as it chronicles the major events of Karol Wojtyla's term as the "head of the Universal Church." Actor Piotr Adamczyk, who played John Paul II in the 2006 film, won several awards in Italy and Poland for his inspiring portrayal of the beloved pontiff.

Two more films with Catholic themes will be screened on April 28: "The Passion," a short film adaptation of a pantomime play inspired by the theme of the Passion of Christ confronted by the present-day reality (4:30 p.m.) and "A Reverend Father Tischner and His Highlanders' Philosophy," set in the beautiful scenery of the Tatra Highlands (6:30 p.m.)

Catholic-related films will also be shown April 30 with the documentary, "The Parish Priest of Majdanek" (5 p.m.) and the feature film, "Who Never Lived…," about an HIV-infected priest who finds redemption (9 p.m.) "Who Never Lived…" is one of six festival films up for the Hollywood Eagle Award which will be announced by the Festival's jury of Hollywood filmmakers during the April 26 gala.

A complete schedule of screening times for the films, which all have English subtitles, is available at www.polishfilmLA.org. Festival ticket prices are $10, general; $8.50 students; $7 seniors. Discount prices are available for weekday double features and discount ticket books for five different films are also offered as well as group tickets for the same film. Ticket booklets and group tickets can be acquired by calling the festival information line at (818) 982-8827.

The Polish American Film Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting a higher level of understanding of Polish culture through film. Members of the Polish Film Festival's honorary committee includes Academy Award winners such as Zbigniew Rybczynski (animator and director, "Tango), Janusz Kaminski (cinematographer, "Saving Private Ryan," "Schindler's List"), and Jan A.P. Kaczmarek (composer, "Finding Neverland").