Physarum Polycephalum

Art Film

Runtime 4:44

Kamila Paulina Tomczyk, Poland

"Physarum Polycephalum" is a paradocumentary animation that takes a closer look at the microscopic secrets of a fascinating single-celled creature.

The film explores the biophysical behaviour of Physarum polycephalum, a unicellular organism whose movement and decision-making processes emerge from physical principles rather than a nervous system. The narrative highlights how the organism uses oscillatory flows, diffusion, and pressure-driven transport to navigate its environment, forming dynamic networks that demonstrate self-organization, optimization, and complex-systems physics. Through time-lapse cinematography, the film visualizes these physical processes, showing how simple physical interactions give rise to collective behaviour and intelligent-like problem solving.