Zomerfilmcollege 2019

“Hopefully, the Rossellini evening will be the film event of the year for many people,” Dirk Lauwaert wrote in 1969 in a short text, called “Finally Rossellini.” Fifty years later, CINEA dedicates a whole screening and lecture series to the Italian filmmaker Roberto Rossellini during its annual Summer Film School (July 7 – 13). Once again they offer more than fifteen talks by internationally renowned experts and twenty screenings of recent digital restorations and rare 35mm prints from the extensive collection of the Royal Belgian Film Archive (CINEMATEK) or other archives.

Lauwaert continued: “For over thirthy years, Roberto Rossellini is a filmmaker who manages to make films that, again and again, prove to be revolutionary. This vitality shows us that Rossellini's qualities can't be identified with one lasting or fixed theme.” The Rossellini program, curated by professor Steven Jacobs, will shed light on some of his lesser known films. It will focus on both the canonical titles from the neorealist period and Rossellini’s more obscure, often wrongly neglected and forgotten films, such as a screening of an ultra rare 35mm print of Socrate (1971). On Sabzian, you can read more about Socrate and Rossellini's television films (NL), along the text by Dirk Lauwaert (NL) or Stoffel Debuysere (EN).

The second series, ‘The Shady 80s’, offers a wide-ranging look on the ‘other’ American 1980s cinema and will also highlight some forgotten and wrongly neglected titles. Following in the footsteps of the New Hollywood directors, this younger generation of filmmakers that upheld the ideals of the American 1970s cinema would flower into a healthy alternative movie scene that was cinematographically very diverse, but shared a fascination with dark subject matter and a skeptic attitude towards the reigning ideology. This year's summer guest, Bette Gordon, is invited to present her seminal film Variety (1983), and will give a talk on the work of fellow women filmmakers who were part of the burgeoning independent scene of 1980s New York City. While the talks in the Rossellini program are mostly in Dutch, the entire Shady 80s lecture series will be English spoken.

Two novelties this year: a new location (DE Studio in Antwerp instead of Cinema Zuid) and a new lecturer: critic Nick Pinkerton (Film Comment, Sight & Sound, Artforum, ...) who will share his insights in both programs. Here, you can read his Sight & Sound article “The Other Side of 80s America,” that partly inspired the program. In a radio interview, CINEA's Bart Versteirt presented an overview of this year's edition [in Dutch]. You can find the full schedule, all practical information and ticket options here. 

You can find our selection here.