"Cinema stands for diversity!"
A joint call to safeguard democracy and stand up for diversity and exchange across borders and cultures ended this year's General Assembly of the International Confederation of Arthouse Cinemas – CICAE on the 15th of May 2024 in Cannes.The participating cinemas and associations from 17 countries likewise called on EU citizens to exercise their right to vote in the European elections on 6-9 June 2024.
Arthouse cinemas around the world are committed to programmes that showcase diversity and artistic freedom, sometimes under difficult circumstances. As crucial cultural hubs for their local communities and through open exchange with audiences, filmmakers and their works, cinemas promote tolerance, freedom of expression and provide a crucial space for core democratic values as a whole. With its projects and actions, the CICAE continues to support cinemas in countries where these values are increasingly under threat or no longer existing at all. This increasing threat makes it all the more crucial that democracy, for example through elections, is practised by everyone.
For CICAE President Dr Christian Bräuer, it is clear that cinemas, as places of democracy, require special protection: "Those who support independent cinemas, with their diverse programmes, festivals and series for audiences of all sizes and ages and their mission to provide a forum for different ideas and cultural expressions, are strengthening any open society. Our appeal is therefore also directed at politicians to recognise the value of cinemas for the community and to ensure their survival."
Expansion of Activities to Strengthen International Collaboration across the Sector
The CICAE itself is expanding its activities to enable international collaboration across the sector following the relocation of the renowned global initiative Arthouse Cinema Training (19-25 August 2024) to Berlin and the change in management to Sebastian Naumann. The international members of the association’s Board of Directors have been working on numerous projects. These include the development of the global day of action of independent cinemas, the European Arthouse Cinema Day on 17 November 2024, and the expansion of the Arthouse Cinema Awards, in which juries of cinema exhibitors at international festivals around the world shine a spotlight on films with special cultural and artistic value. A new addition, following the spirit of international collaboration, is the platform Arthouse Cinema Hub, which enables cinemas around the world to share best practice and highlight their work and initiatives (www.arthousecinemahub.com).
Taking Stock: The State of the Sector
During the well-attended members' meeting, hosted by CICAE president Christian Bräuer, attendees from across the world presented and discussed current developments. Despite significant challenges representatives from most territories expressed optimistim about the future of the sector and reaffirmed the continuous key role of independent and arthouse cinemas for cultural diversity and the wellbeing of the international audiovisual ecosystem. In the afternoon, the members met for several workshops to develop perspectives for the association’s projects and activities.
For Christian Bräuer, international collaboration and exchange remains crucial for the wellbeing of cinemas everywhere and, by extension, for the wellbeing of the audiovisual sector as a whole.
"Running an arthouse cinema is becoming increasingly complex and demanding everywhere!", says Bräuer. "In the ‚Filterworld‘ age where algorithms dictate what we see on our small screens, cinemas offer people a unique cultural forum where audiences can engage with and focus on a wide range of programmes and perspectives. They remain the last mile for any film to reach and form a connection with their audiences. Since the end of the pandemic, audiences are returning in droves, led by the enthusiastic embrace of the cinematic experience by younger people “.
Yet, cinemas are threatened, says Bräuer, by exponential growth of operating costs and an increasingly unfavourable political climate. Bräuer:
„In order to continue their crucial mission, cinemas require political support, tailor-made funding, and regulations that provide an equitable playing field for all actors within the audiovisual ecosystem“.
