The European Film Academy (EFA) is launching a month-long initiative at cinemas across Europe that aims to strengthen and protect the future of European film.
The inaugural Month of European Film will begin on November 13 and will see cinemas in 35 countries present special programmes, events and dedicated retrospectives for four weeks. Mubi will concurrently stream a special focus on European films, taking the initiative global.
It will all lead up to the European Film Awards, set to take place in Iceland on December 10.
Matthijs Wouter Knol, CEO and director of EFA, said it marked the launch of “a new network” of theatres that has been carefully orchestrated by the Academy. He also stressed the underlying goal of the initiative, which is to preserve, defend and support European film.
“What Europe is missing is a strong awareness of both the joint richness and the vulnerability of its own cinema and with it, the will and dedication to respect and protect it. We are convinced that strengthening the visibility of European films which feature our very own European stories and history shouldn’t be done only on a national level. This is a European question and need, one that can only be answered successfully together, by further joining forces.”
He added that the initiative was “a first step” and that EFA would be “increasingly committed” to the event in the coming years.
“Our goal in the future is to create more visibility for films from the annual academy selection as well as for the nominated films to a larger audience and to our members during the Month of European Film,” said Knol.
The month of activities will begin on November 13 with the European Arthouse Cinema Day, a project organised by CICAE, and the European Film Academy’s yearly Young Audience Award.
Across the four weeks, each participating cinema will present a unique programme targeting their specific audience as well as retrospectives of renowned European filmmakers such as Lars von Trier, Jacques Tati, Jonas Mekas, Pier Paolo Pasolini and Agnes Varda.
Cinemas include the UK’s Glasgow Film Theatre, which will screen European titles including Palme d’or winner Triangle Of Sadness, Aftersun and Tori And Lokita. GFT will also host French Film Festival UK from November 17-24, as part of the festival’s 30th anniversary year that itself will play for more than 40 days in over 40 venues throughout the UK.
In Ukraine, which has faced attacks from Russia on power facilities in recent weeks, the Zhovten Cinema in Kyiv aims to mount an Italian retrospective as well as host activities for young audiences.
Further cinemas taking part include France’s Balzac in Paris, Italy’s Cinema Beltrade in Milan, Latvia’s Splendid Palace in Riga, the Netherlands’ EYE in Amsterdam, and Germany’s Yorck cinema chain in Berlin.
Films being screened, which have picked up awards at festivals this year, include Close, Eo, Saint Omer and Holy Spider among many others.
The Nicolai Biograf cinema in Kolding, Denmark, will host special screenings of European short films for people living with dementia while the Otthon Mozi theatre in Kecskemet, Hungary will host screenings alongside an exhibition of movie poster interpretations painted by young students.
The month-long initiative follows a pilot in Berlin last year and EFA has committed to grow the programme going forward with more venues and opportunities to highlight European film.
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