Unseen Europe Hub Page

Unseen Europe Hub Page

Introduction: Europe as a Cultural Project 

My courses and research projects in general have been to explore developments in European cinema in the five main industrial countries of Europe in the 20th and now 21st  centuries. These countries are Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Russia. This project is based upon a SPECT approach (Social / Political / Economic / Cultural / Textual). This project is of necessity open ended but it is envisaged as part of a necessary cultural project in the interests of developing notions of cultural citizenship and aspects of representation which go far beyond the limitations of instrumentalised commercialism.

This approach excludes a rich and diverse cinematic heritage which extends from Iceland to Poland via Sweden, Finland and Estonia and through Denmark, Holland and Belgium. I have therefore decided to slowly develop what I'm describing as 'The Unseen Europe' as films from smaller countries have severe difficulties in gaining the audience they often deserve.

The European Union is now 26 countries and 26 rich cultural heritages which overlap and inform each other historically. At this time when the sense of direction of what Europe actually is and what it might become is uncertain - because of the rejection by the voters in France and Holland of closer constitutional ties  - it is important to prioritise the cultural aspects of these diverse 'nations'. 

This cinema is not a cinema concerned primarily with stars and the paraphernalia of commercialism. It is more of an 'art' cinema in the sense of those involved following their individual projects often with the director linked to the production crews and scriptwriters. This is an auteur cinema which people should be proud of. It is a powerful visual heritage which is likely to be remembered and revisted  by many in the fullness of time. It is a cinema which will gradually become canonical. These are sentiments and visions which go beyond the 'postmodern' in the sense that one isn't judgemental about the content or targeted audience of a media text.  This is to say the content of texts is important and not always easy to deal with. It can make audiences uncomfortable and is frequently challenging in many different ways.

Europe will not become a coherent entity unless it develops a culture which develops both an overarching pan-Europeanism and at the same time is celebratory of difference. This is a tall order and there is no historical precedent for this for the senses of nationhood and national identity are often deeply embedded. At the same time there is a desire for something greater which goes beyond Europe's history of repressive empires all of which came tumbling down either during or in the aftermath of the European 30 years war of the 20th century. The mayhem and carnage following the breakup of Yugoslavia is a salutary lesson about the primacy of the cultural within identity politics. 

The importance of Europe as a cultural project rather than a political and economic convenience cannot be overstated if Europe is to become something other than a simple confederation of mainly economically linked countries with regulatory directives to control the worst excesses of capitalism. 

In Britain at least, it is very hard to see a good range of films which represent aspects of British life leave alone 'sub-titled' films which deal with historical and national themes which are probably unfamiliar, yet cinema is a great way to learn about and share cultural experiences. Currently DVDs and the occasional TV film are one of the few ways a British audience can learn about other aspects of European culture. Usefully in the UK the government is exerting pressure on TV companies like the BBC to spend more of its film budget on non-Hollywood films although the pressure is on to spend it on british films.  

For these reasons it is intended that this blog will gradually develop this page providing resource links relating to directors and national cinemas outside of the 'Big Five'.  The first posting has been a resources page on the work of Theo Angelopoulos the celebrated Greek director.  

Why Angelopoulos? Well this probably has something to do with spending some time over the last two summers in the Greek Islands. There is a surprise serendiptious memory of our 2006 trip to  Koufanissia. On our return ferry jouney a woman and her 9 year old daughter sat next to us. She was a solicitor from Cyprus who had trained in the UK and was a member of the film club in Nicosia. We had a fine discussion about European cinema and the experience was a reminder of the cultural homogeneities which link the countries of Europe in surprising ways as we celebrated the excellent film making of Kieslowski for example.  Cultural differences between Greece and Britain, indeed Northern Europe are fascinating yet Europe looks to the Greek city states as the Political and cultural crucible of contemporary Europe.

Belgian Cinema  

Greek Cinema:

Theo Angelopoulos 

Costa Gravas 'Z'

European Film Institutions:

This is a developing page which will eventually provide links to a wide range of National and European-wide film institutions

Lithuanian Cinema

Being a small country physically and in population it is of course very hard to develop a thriving film industry because it is such an industrial process which frequently demands high budgets to pay known stars and have a large budget. Even the art-house circuit in the UK at least is increasingly constrained by commercial imperatives (financial targets) rather than cultural benefits which are often unquantifiable. In the middle of the 1990s following near financial collapse in the transitional period from Soviet rule Lithuania could not even afford to make a single film from its cultural budget despite the EU being prepared to underwrite 50% of the costs. However when one visited a museum in those times not only was there a charge (relatively little for a foreigner in terms of real income) but somebody would follow you around turning the lights off and on to save power.

By 2006 there seems to have been more hope as this article from Violeta Davoliute: Seven Men and a Manifesto argues.

Bradford Film Festival  showed several new Lithuanian films in 2005. This programme of Lithuanian films was a first, not just in the UK but also outside of Lithuania. The festival was part of a whole cultural exchange project Visions of Yorskhire and Vilnius.

Lithuanian Film Centre

Glasgow University Centre for Russian, Central & East European Studies : Lithuanian Film

Baltic Times: Lithuanian Film Tries to Find its Niche

Lithuania Sociology Magazine Sociumas examines the prospects for Lithuanian cinema.

: 27 May 2008 10:24 |  Tags: European Cultural Policy European Film Policy European Union Film Institutions Greek Cinema Lithuanian Cinema Unseen Europe Hub Page |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

European Film Institutions

European Film Institutions

Please link here to other hub reference pages on Kinoeye

Under Development

This page is under development however the available links may well prove useful to visitors so the page will made open. Links will be added on an ongoing basis.  

Introduction

The purpose of this entry is to provide links to the wide range of organisations working within a European context rather than just a national context which help to promote the making, distribution and exhibition of films in or about Europe. It will also include links to a range of organisations which classify and develop knowledge about the history and development of cinema in Europe. This will act as a basis for raising ideas about the issues of audience development for European films as films about Europe which transcend national boundaries.  Without strong core audiences it will always be a problem for European cinema to create a clear identity beyond the bounds of the national. Please note that non-EU countries are also listed.

Austria

Austrian Film Commission

Belgium

Communauté française de Belgique

Cinergie Belgium  

Flanders Image  

Kinoeye Belgian Cinema Page

Belarus

Bosnia & Herzegovina 

Bulgaria 

Croatia

Cyprus 

Czech Republic 

Denmark 

Danish Film Institute

Estonia

Guide to Shooting Film in Estonia

European Cinema Institutions

Cineuropa - Four Language Site for European Cinema

Compendium: European Cultural Policies & Trends site

Europa Charter for Media Literacy

European Association of Animation Film

European Film Children's Association  

European Film Festivals

The fifth edition of the CROSSING EUROPE Film Festival Linz takes place from 22 to 27 April 2008.
Based in the European Capital of Culture 2009, the festival has been dedicated since 2004 to a young, headstrong and contemporary European auteur cinema. Over the course of six days CROSSING EUROPE offers its international guests and the local cinema audience around 150 hand-picked documentary and feature films from all over Europe.

Vilnius and Linz are cities that will become twin cultural capitals of Europe in 2009. Scanorama in partnership with the festival “Crossing Europe” started preparing a new continuous programme “Crossing Europe”, which is showcasing the most interesting films of Eastern and Central European directors that won prizes at the Linz film festival. Both Scanorama and “Crossing Europe” are young, ambitious festivals, members of the Alliance of Central and East European Film Festivals, who pursued bold cooperation among themselves well in advance of 2009. The first swallow in “Crossing Europe” section was Sergej Stanojkovski’s feature “Contact” (2005) that won the audience prize in Linz and was also screened at film festivals in Manheim-Heidelberg, San Paulo, Thessalonica, Belgrade, Sophia, Brooklyn, Bruxelles and other international locations.

ABOUT EUROPA

Created in 1992, thanks to the financing from the MEDIA Programme of the European Union and of the Centre National de la Cinématographie, Europa Cinemas has become the first cinemas network with a mainly European programming.

The network provides a financial support to cinemas that commit themselves to the programming of a significant number of non-domestic European films and to the organisation of promotional activities concerning European films for young audiences.

Thanks to the support of Eurimages and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the activity of Europa Cinemas has extended to eastern European countries.

Thanks to the support of Euromed Audiovisuel of the European Union, the network has been set up in 12 Mediterranean countries, offering support to the promotion, distribution sector as well as to the exhibition of European and Mediterranean films.

EUROPA CINEMAS' OBJECTIVES

Contacts - Board of Directors - Board of Management- Experts Committee - Objectives • To increase the programming of European and Mediterranean films in cinema theatres, with non-national films taking priority. • To encourage exhibitors' initiatives aimed at young audiences. • To develop a network of cinema theatres to enable joint activities at an international level.

MEDIA is the EU support programme for the European audiovisual industry. 

MEDIA co-finances training initiatives for audiovisual industry professionals, the development of production projects (feature films, television drama, documentaries, animation and new media), as well as the and promotion of European audiovisual works... more

The MEDIA 2007 Programme comprises a series of support measures for the European audiovisual industry focusing on:

• training professionals
• developing production projects
• distributing films and audiovisual programmes
• promoting films and audiovisual programmes
• supporting film festivals

The MEDIA programme is jointly run by the Information Society & Media Directorate General

Founded in 1989, the European Film Academy (EFA) currently unites 1,800 European film professionals with the common aim of promoting European film culture. Throughout the year, the EFA initiates and participates in a series of activities dealing with film politics as well as economic, artistic, and training aspects. The programme includes conferences, seminars and workshops, and a common goal is to build a bridge between creativity and the industry. These activities culminate in the annual presentation of the European Film Awards

The mandate the European Film Promotions or EFP has set itself includes the following:

- to increase the competitive opportunities for
European films in the international marketplace;
- to improve access for European film professionals
to the international marketplace;
- to contribute, where possible, to the opening of
new markets for European film;
- to enhance the distribution possibilities for European film;- to further share the accumulated knowledge and experience of the Association via its european wide network.

Finland

Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia

France

Germany

Greece

Greek Film Centre

The Greek Film Center is a corporation that belongs to the broader public sector, is supervised by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and subsidized by the state.

The GFC's basic goals are:

• the protection, support and development of the art of film in Greece
• the presentation, dissemination and promotion of Greek film productions both domestically and internationally

Kinoeye Theo Angelopoulos links page

Holland

Hungary

Iceland 

A BRIEF HISTORY OF ICELANDIC CINEMA

The premiere of Land and Sons in January 1980 heralded the start of regular film production in Iceland. However, the history of Icelandic cinema is much older. Films were shown in Iceland for the first time in 1903 and shot in Iceland as early as in 1904.

Ireland  

Italy

Latvia

Nacionālais kino centrs

This link is an English one

Lithuania 

 Home page » Contact us » About the project » Sitemap » Lietuviškai »

Lithuanian Filmmakers Union  

Institute of Documentary Film.

This is a Baltic Institution rather than a Lithuanian one. It is going under Lithuania as it relates to a Vilnius based conference.   

Luxemburg

Malta

Moldova 

Norway

Welcome to the Norwegian Film Institute

The tasks of the former Norwegian Film Fund, Norwegian Film Institute and Norwegian Film Development are now being transferred to the new Norwegian Film Institute. The organization began operation on 1 April 2008.

The new organization will be the state's administrative body for film policy and adviser on matters of film policy.

The Norwegian Film Institute has some 100 employees. It has an operating budget of NOK 100 million, and receives over NOK 300 million in public funding.

The Institute's Director is Nina Refseth.

For now, you can find information about the new organization's former areas of activity at the same sites as in the past. Click on the buttons below. You'll find information about the MEDIA Program here.

Poland

Portugal 

Romania 

Russia 

Media Education and Media Literacy in Russia: English Versions of Information

Serbia 

SRP | ENG

Slovakia 

Slovenia 

Spain  

Cine y Audiovisuales

Sweden  

Switzerland 

Swiss Films

United Kingdom  

Logo of the British Film Institute 

What we do

The BFI (British Film Institute) promotes understanding and appreciation of Britain's rich film and television heritage and culture. Established in 1933, the BFI runs a range of activities and services:

Ukraine

: 02 Feb 2008 08:44 |  Tags: Austrian Film Commission Baltic Film And Media School Centre National De La Cinematographie Cnc Compendium European Cultural Policies Crossing Europe Danish Film Institute Efp Eu Media Europa Cinemas European Cinema European Film Academy European Film Institutions European Film Policy European Film Promotions Finnish Film Foundation Greek Film Centre Holland Film Irish Film Board Lithuanian Film Centre Norwegian Film Institute Scanorama Swedish Film Institute |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

European Film Policy: A Webliography

European Film Policy: A Webliography

Please note page still under development but it may still be of use to current visitors.

Introduction  

As has been mentioned elswhere European film policy initiatives need to be developed with the concept of cultural citizenship firmly in mind. This is clearly linked to concepts of overlapping and mutually informing processes of identity formation.  Identity needs to be flexibly conceived of able to transcend pure place and work within a broader sense of a European cultural identity whilst recognising that place is an important component of identity. Identity isn't also linked to place as there are many identities which cut across place and incorporate space /s as well. In popular culture for example Rave culture linked to clubbing or else the surprise use of spaces related to a specific identity formation. From the perspective of film policy it is important that a good range of identities are represented and this requires an strong committment to the eroding notion of public service broadcasting - to inform, educate and entertain - set against purely commercial considerations.

Below are some links to courses, papers, declarations etc concerning European film industries. another posting will establish a webliography for Cultural Citizenship which needs to be linked in with culture and media policy debates.  

Webliography

CHALLENGES IN EUROPEAN CINEMA AND FILM POLICY by Nils Klevjer Aa (Published Winter 2001) 

National, transnational or supranational cinema? Rethinking European film studies. Bergfelder Media Culture Society.2005; 27: 315-331

European Charter on Film Online

Think Tank on European Film & Film Policy  (PDF)

Undergraduate Module on European Film Industries from Leeds University

Link to Anne Jackel BFI publication European Film Industries

Netribution : Alternative voluntarily run site primarily for Filmmakers. (People developing their own policy from the ground up ?)

Policy Unplugged: Policy developments in The European Digital Cinema Forum Guide to Digital Cinema Production (Focal press 2004)

Department of Culture Media and Sport UK: Film Section

European Parliament News: Discussion with Director Cedric  Klapisch on problems in the European Film industry

This also has a link to a Realplayer interview with Klapisch in French only at the bottom of the page.  

The European Convention on Cinematographic Co-production Order 2006

European Film Agency Directors, Cine-Regio and the
Capital Regions of Cinema issue joint statement
on European culture agenda (May 2007) 

Federation of European Film Directors

European Film Finance Summit (2007) 

The challenges for European audiovisual policy: Jonathan Davis, Strategy Advisor, UK Film Council (2004) 

European Media, Cultural Integration and Globalisation.Reflections on the ESF-programme Changing Media - Changing Europe. Ib Bondebjerg (Academic Paper). 

The Decline and Fall of the European Film Industry:
Sunk Costs, Market Size and Market Structure, 1890-1927.  Gerben Bakker. LSE  Working Paper No. 70/03

: 26 Oct 2007 11:01 |  Tags: European Cinema European Directors European Film Policy European Film Studies |  Comments (0) |  Close comments |  Report a problem