Kino Climates: Towards An Ecology in Film Exhibition
How is cinema doing in your country? How do you know it is
healthy? By the number of films that have been produced?
Statistics certainly prove that the number of films produced
globally is growing. And a rich programme like the one
presented here in Rotterdam certainly confirms the vitality of
cinematographic creation worldwide.
Yet, like with many other cultural fields, the current
overproduction in film making doesn’t necessarily represent
a positive factor. Actually, the film industry is experiencing a
paradoxical phenomenon: only a slight percentage of this growing
production finds its way to distribution and access to cinema
screens, the market being unable to absorb this film ‘overflow’.
Thus, the way films are programmed is also distorted: films are
queuing up waiting to be released, and their life span on cinema
screens gets shorter and shorter as the turnover of films in theatres
becomes more frantic.
As a consequence, some of the major stakes for film making
today and in the near future lie in the exhibition sector. Too
often considered the last link in the film production chain, film
exhibition has been neglected for a long time, and finds itself
strongly bipolarized these days with multiplexes on one hand and
theatres labelled as ‘art cinemas’ on the other hand. One could
conclude there is nothing in between…. Now, this in-between
area is exactly where we find those cinemas we call ‘alternative’
or ‘independent’. These often unclassifiable venues certainly
constitute an interesting, and underestimated, alternative to
commercial or more traditional cinemas.
During the 80s and 90s, a large number of art cinemas had to
close down. Recently, though, we have observed a resurgence
in alternative and micro-cinema spaces; projects that had often
started with very modest budgets, compensated by lots of
ingenuity and sometimes established in absolutely improbable and
unique places.
These independent cinemas are contributing to the diversification
of the cinematographic landscape. For instance, these are the venues
which might dare to programme films that regular distributors
judge ‘risky’ (because they are either too difficult or too fragile). If
it weren’t for these cinemas that are not subjected to the strains or
pressures in terms of immediate profitability, a great number of
films would only be seen thanks to the film festival network.
It has to be said that film festivals have proliferated to such an
extent that they have often become the primary option available
for the circulation of non–commercial, low-budget, art house types
of films. Due to their current increased influence, it was necessary
that a major festival raised the issue of what is the future for the
alternative film exhibition circuit.
The International Film Festival Rotterdam, in collaboration
with Brussels-based Nova cinema, is therefore hosting Kino
Climates, a meeting that will attempt to provide an overview of
the independent film exhibition scene in Europe today. It will
also take a quick glance at the situations in China and Russia. For
the very first time, more than thirty venues and organizations
will gather, not only to exchange information but also in order to
create a network. Kino Climates will be articulated in three parts:
discussion panels, conferences and screenings. Several activities
will also be accessible to visitors of the Festival whether they work
in the industry or not.
During three consecutive afternoons you will be invited to a series
of ten short-conferences, ironically titled, ‘How to save the film
world in ten easy steps’. In the evening, Kino Climates will present
four programmes, mixing short films and performances. These
programmes have been put together with the complicity of all the
cinemas participating in Kino Climates. Hopefully they will reflect
the diversity and the eclecticism of these cinemas.
Kino Climates will also highlight the work of two artists: Pascal
Baes, who is an unparalleled master of the stop-motion technique
and whose main work consists of exploring what a 24th of an
image can reveal, and multi-media artist Greg Pope, founder
of Situation Cinema in the 80s and then Loophole Cinema, a
performance group that certainly left its marks on the British
experimental cinema of the 90s. He will be accompanied by Mike
Cooper, an international music explorer and performer.
We certainly are at the dawn of a new era, with digital cinema
becoming more established and 3D making a fresh comeback.
In this new context, independent cinema still has a very
important role to play, and Kino Climates will hopefully bring
new perspectives on how film distribution and exhibition could
positively be modulated.
Let’s hope that in the future there will be more empathy between
the film festival circuit and the independent cinemas network.
This is time for a Kino Climates summit!
Katia Rossini