Madrid continues its commitment to free film screenings. The Cine Doré already announced that it would offer its entire billboard free for three months and, now, four cultural centers in the city will become European movie theaters until November 28. Films recognized at international festivals such as Cannes, Berlin, Venice or San Sebastian can be seen without paying a single euro.
We are referring to Cineu, the first European Film Festival in Madrid, which aims to bring European culture closer to the public and encourage debate and reflection in cultural centers. It is organized by the cultural association ojO cojo in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and is aimed especially at young people.
In total, 22 films from more than 20 countries in Europe, America, Asia and Africa will be screened, including both feature films and short films. They will be shown at the cultural centers of Valdebernardo and El Madroño (Vicálvaro district), La Vaguada (Fuencarral-El Pardo) and Emilia Pardo Bazán (Centro), with free admission until full capacity is reached. At the end of the screenings, there will be a space for debate on the challenges of the Europe of the present and the future.
Bringing auteur cinema closer
The films to be screened at Cineu are signed by great directors of contemporary cinema such as Mohammad Rasoulof (author of The Seed of the Sacred Fig Tree), Agnieszka Holland (author of Green Border), Aki Kaurismäki (author of Fallen Leaves) or Mati Diop (author of Dahomey). Creative and critical voices about Europe will also be presented.
The aim of the exhibition is to democratize access to culture and to showcase disruptive proposals that are especially attractive to young people. In addition, the cultural centers seek to become not only movie theaters, but also laboratories of ideas in which to address the continent’s main concerns.
Europe and the world
The program groups the films into four different thematic blocks. Europe in Transformation focuses on social, cultural and economic changes, while Shared Memories offers a historical overview to understand how Europe was built. Europe’s relations with the rest of the world are also explored in the Oceanic Bridges block , which reflects on links with Africa, Asia and the Americas.
Finally, the section Spain and Europe: 40 years of a common path commemorates the four decades of Spain’s integration into the European Union. This anniversary has also given rise to the celebration of the festival and is a good opportunity to remember the values of solidarity, cooperation, historical memory and cultural diversity through film.
Cineu’s program
The first screening will be La semilla de la higuera sagrada (The Seed of the Sacred Fig Tree) on October 2 at 6 pm at the Valdebernardo Cultural Center (Vicálvaro). It is a social drama with thriller elements that shows the social reality through the intimacy of a family.
The films will always be shown in the evenings and will continue until November 28. These are the dates of the screenings in each cultural center:
Valdebernardo (Vicálvaro).
- October 16: Green Border.
- October 30: Fallen Leaves.
- November 13: About Happy Hippos and Sad Peacocks and Santé et Tropica.
- November 21: The Answer Forever.
- November 27: Anxiety.
La Vaguada (Fuencarral-El Pardo).
- October 13: Rest in peace.
- October 20: Black Tea.
- October 27: Banda sonora para un golpe de Estado (Soundtrack for a coup d’état).
- November 24: La vida al revés and El sastre de los presidentes.
El Madroño (Vicálvaro)
- October 9: Dahomey.
- October 23: The New Year that never came.
- November 20: Ghariba and Ajeeb and Rosinante.
- November 6: Land Kumeyaay and WACAY, land of tobacco women.
Emilia Pardo Bazán (Center)
- November 21: Who but how, where and Quota.
- November 28: El olvido mata dos veces and Solo niños.