On the State of European Cinema
Since its inception, the film industry has balanced between art and business, and in times of crises the scales would always get tipped towards the commercial side. Cinemas were already having a tough time with the rise of streaming services and home projectors, when the pandemic lockdowns eradicated the habits of cinema-going and diminished the profits of film distribution and everyone involved.
On the State of European Cinema
About the position of European art house filmmakers
This put European art house filmmakers in an even more precarious position. First, they have to navigate through years of bureaucracy, pigeonholing, corruption, and nepotism to make their film and then the chances are high these films won’t travel much outside the festival circuit.
In an attempt to ease this situation, De Balie founded Shifting Pictures, a travelling festival highlighting filmmakers from Serbia, Czechia, Romania and the Netherlands. Shifting Pictures was sponsored by Vfonds and Collaborate to Innovate (Europa Cinemas).