GDAŃSK, Poland — 28th September 2026 — What began as an independent film project created by a foreign student living in Gdańsk has grown into an international festival journey carrying both the film and its Polish place of origin to audiences and juries around the world.

Indian filmmaker and international student Sank Roshan, currently based in Gdańsk, is the writer and director of THE LIAR, a psychological techno-thriller produced in Poland through his independent filmmaking banner, Sankmotion Productions.

Since entering the international festival circuit in 2026, the film has accumulated 38 awards and recognitions worldwide and counting, across festivals and competitions in multiple countries.

Its most recent recognition came much closer to home.

At the 40th International Catholic Film and Multimedia Festival “Niepokalana” 2026 in Poland, THE LIAR received Second Prize in the Amateur Film category, marking another milestone in the film’s international journey and a particularly meaningful recognition for Sank in the country where the project was created.

For Sank, the distinction carries significance beyond another addition to the film’s festival record.

Having moved to Poland as an international student and made Gdańsk his home, he has been developing his filmmaking career alongside his studies while using the city as the base from which his independent work is produced and presented internationally.

“There is something particularly meaningful about receiving recognition in Poland because this is where the film was created and where I have been building this new chapter of my life as a filmmaker,” Sank said. “Every time THE LIAR is selected or recognised internationally, I also feel that a small part of Gdańsk and Poland travels with the film.”

A Film Made in Poland, Travelling Internationally

THE LIAR is a 17-minute psychological techno-thriller exploring the increasingly complex relationship between human beings, artificial intelligence, trust and deception.

The story follows a software engineer whose seemingly ordinary journey inside an AI-controlled vehicle develops into a psychological confrontation in which the boundaries between truth, manipulation and technological control become increasingly uncertain.

The project was created with limited production resources, with Sank taking responsibility for several aspects of the filmmaking process, including writing, directing, acting, cinematography, editing, sound work and post-production.

Rather than allowing those limitations to restrict the project’s ambitions, Sank developed the film with the intention of demonstrating how concept, atmosphere, sound and storytelling could carry a production beyond the scale of its resources.

That approach has since taken THE LIAR far beyond its original production environment in Gdańsk.

38 International Awards and Recognitions

Since beginning its festival journey, THE LIAR has accumulated 38 awards and recognitions internationally, including awards, nominations, finalist placements and official selections.

The film and its filmmaker have received recognition across categories including:

Best Short Film of the Year 2026, Best Thriller Film, Best Suspense Film, Best Sci-Fi Film, Best International Short Film, Best Narrative Film, Best Fiction Short Film, Best Indie Short Film, Best Debut Filmmaker, Best Sound Design, Best Editing, Best Actor, Best Movie Poster, Best Amateur Film, Best Asian Filmmaker, Best Direction and Best Synopsis.

The diversity of the recognised categories has been particularly meaningful for Sank because many elements of the project were developed and executed independently.

The festival journey has also become an education in another side of filmmaking that often remains invisible to audiences: how an independent filmmaker positions a finished film, identifies suitable festivals, communicates with international organisations and gradually develops a path for a project beyond production.

From Engineering to Cinema

Sank’s route into filmmaking has been unconventional.

An Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering graduate, he previously spent approximately seven years working professionally with multinational companies before choosing to pursue filmmaking more seriously.

His interest in cinema, however, began considerably earlier. During his university years, he started experimenting with filmmaking independently and gradually taught himself different areas of the craft, ranging from cinematography and editing to sound and visual storytelling.

After relocating to Poland, filmmaking increasingly became the direction around which he began rebuilding his professional ambitions.

Today, while continuing his Master’s studies in Gdańsk, he is developing his filmmaking career through Sankmotion Productions and working toward future narrative projects.

For Sank, THE LIAR represents more than a single short film. Its growing international festival presence has become evidence of how a project originating from a highly limited independent production environment can gradually reach audiences far beyond the place where it was created.

And for a filmmaker who currently calls Gdańsk home, each international selection provides another opportunity to connect his work with the city and country in which that filmmaking journey is taking shape.

“My goal was not just to collect laurels,” Sank said. “The real ambition is to build a sustainable filmmaking career and create stories capable of travelling beyond geographical, cultural and financial limitations. THE LIAR has become the first major step in understanding how far that journey can go.”

The film’s international festival run remains ongoing.

About THE LIAR

Title: THE LIAR

Genre: Psychological Techno-Thriller

Runtime: 17 minutes

Language: English

Country of Production: Poland

Year Of Production: 2025

Writer and Director: Sank Roshan

Production: Sankmotion Productions

Filmmaker Base: Gdańsk, Poland

THE LIAR explores trust, deception and artificial intelligence through the story of a software engineer trapped in an increasingly disturbing confrontation with technology.


About Sank Roshan

Sank Roshan is an Indian independent filmmaker and international student based in Gdańsk, Poland. An Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering graduate with approximately seven years of professional experience in multinational companies, he transitioned from the corporate technology sector toward filmmaking after years of independently developing his craft.

Through Sankmotion Productions, he creates narrative projects combining psychological themes, technological concepts and independent filmmaking.