Author: John Harrison

Without culture, we have nothing – and film festivals are the perfect outlet to learn about your own and foreign cultures too! Inviting you to visit and experience the culture of the festival’s venue is yet another way of bringing us all closer, whilst enjoying the razzmatazz and glamour provided by all the film stars & directors, the glitzy locations do the rest.

What do we take away from visiting and taking part at a film festival: enjoying its locality, hospitality, food & drink, getting to know its peoples, as well as making friends is just the start. Learning about a country’s artistic talent is another, and learning about other countries’ artistic talent and another nation’s social issues, or whatever a film’s subject might be, will be yet another highlight of being part of it all.

Whether you might visit a metropole or make the effort to travel to a boutique event, the adventure starts right at the beginning. Seeing your favourite stars in the flesh is where the highlights continue and making it a city break, staying somewhere in style, gives it all another dimension. Try Berlin, Vilnius, Istanbul, Krakow, Rotterdam, Málaga, Munich, Brussels, Cannes and Locarno, and you’ll experience a wild variety of all sorts of adventures. Check the list below for the best film festivals in the most picturesque locations in Europe and then start making plans…

Leading European Film Festivals:

• 26 Jan – 06 Feb: Int’l Film Festival Rotterdam (iffr.com)
• 10 – 22 Feb: Berlinale, Berlin Film Festival (berlinale.de)
• 04 – 20 March: Borderlines Film Festival/ UK (borderlinesfilmfestival.co.uk)
• 11 -20 March: Sofia Int’l Film Festival/ Bulgaria (siff.bg)
• 17 – 31 March: Vilnius Int’l Film Festival/ Lithuania (kinopavasaris.lt)
• 8 – 19 April: Istanbul Int’l Film Festival/ Turkey (film.iksv.org)
• 28 April – 9 May: IndieLisboa/ Portugal (indielisboa.com)
• 17 – 28 May: Cannes Film Festival/ France (festival-cannes.com)
• 29 May – 5 June: Krakow Film Festival/ Poland (krakowfilmfestival.pl)
• 13 – 18 June: Annecy Int’l Animation Film Festival/ France (annecy.org)
• 17 – 26 June: Transylvania Int’l Film Festival (tiff.ro)
• 23 June – 2 July: Munich Int’l Film Festival/ Germany (filmfest-muenchen.de)
• 23 June – 2 July: Brussels Int’l Film Festival/ Belgium (briff.be)
• 1 – 9 July: Karlovy Vary Int’l Film Festival/ Czech Rep (kviff.com)
• 21 July – 31 July: Jerusalem Film Festival/ Israel (jff.org.il)
• 3 -13 Aug: Locarno Film Festival/ Switzerland (locarnofestival.ch)
• 12 – 19 Aug: Sarajevo Film Festival/ Bosnia & Herzegovina (sff.ba)
• 18 – 25 August: Edinburgh Int’l Film Festival/ UK (edfilmfest.org.uk)
• 31 August – 10 Sept: Venice Int’l Film Festival/ Italy (labiennale.org)
• 16 – 24 Sep: San Sebastian Film Festival/ Spain (sansebastianfestival.com)
• 22 Sept – 2 Oct: Zurich Film Festival/ Switzerland (zff.com)
• 2 -9 Oct: Málaga Film Festival (festivaldemalaga.com)
• 5 – 16 October: BFI London Film Festival/ United Kingdom (whatson.bfi.org.uk)
• 11 – 22 Oct: Film Fest Gent/ Belgium (filmfestival.be)
• 14 – 23 Oct: Helsinki Int’l Film Festival/ Finland (hiff.fi)
• 26 Oct – 5 Nov: Raindance Film Festival/ UK (raindance.org)
• 9 – 20 Nov: Stockholm Int’l Film Festrival/ Sweden (stockholmfilmfestival.se)

Who doesn’t love a cheeky weekend in ‘gay Paris’? After your Bateau Mouche tour on the Seine, go for lunch in the 4th arrondissement, where you find Les Halles and the Centre Pompidou.

Little restaurants and eateries line the pavements here and this world famous art space just sets the scene perfectly. The original building was ground-breaking at the time, and still hasn’t lost its charm after all these years! A bientôt…

Centre Pompidou in Paris

Centre Pompidou in Paris is famed for its vast collection of modern art collections from the 20th and 21st centuries. Within the centre you will find the Bibliothèque publique d’information (a huge public library), the Musée National d’Art Moderne, and IRCAM, a centre for music and acoustic research. The building itself is not recognised as your typical Parisian architecture, in fact the building was quite ground-breaking for its time and is a sight to behold, with its escalators to the exterior and large coloured tubing and the much-loved addition of a panoramic view of Paris from the 6th floor.

Designed by Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers, the architecture is just the start of what Centre Pompidou has to offer. Home to the National Museum of Modern Art, works from iconic artists are displayed here. Including from the likes of Matisse, Picasso, Andy Warhol, Niki de Saint Phalle. Alongside their permanent collections, the exhibitions they host throughout the calendar year are internationally renowned, adored by visitors from around the world.

Currently, in celebration of the reopening of Centre Pompidou and the wide range of exhibitions now open to the public, visitors can marvel at the current exhibitions and permanent collections with the unlimited ticket ‘Destination Pompidou’ allowing you unlimited access to the museum until September 30th 2021.

The history of the Centre Pompidou

Named after Georges Pompidou, President of France from 1969 to 1974, who commissioned the building, with its official opening hosted by President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing in January 1977. Based in the Beauborg area near Les Halles (excellent shopping) and rue Montorgueil in the 4th arrondissement of Pairs. This centre of art and culture soon became popular with Parisians and tourists alike, welcoming 180 million visitors since its doors were opened.

Through a process of planning throughout the 60s, the idea of the centre was born due to a demand for both a free public library and a wish to renew the idea of Paris as a leading city of art and culture. During the planning process it was also decided the IRCAM would live within the structure. The build was then left to architects, Rogers and Piano, to take on the project.

The design certainly caused some reaction, a bit like marmite, you either love it or hate it! Many people were in awe of the design which the architects decided to design the building to resemble that of a beating heart.

Once opened, the new institution for art and culture in Paris found huge success, quickly becoming one of the five most-visited monuments in Paris. Which, in a vast city full of historic attractions, is certainly an achievement.

Exhibitions at Centre Pompidou

With a wide range of exhibitions hosted throughout the calendar year, here is a snippet of what is currently on offer and what is to come and what we would love to see here at TA-DAH!

Current:

Tribute to Georges Rouault Holy Anger – 9 July – 3 October 2021
Petits papiers du 20e siècle Destribats donation – 19 May 2021 – 31 Jan 2022

Coming soon:

Georgia O’Keeffe – 8 September – 6 December 2021
L’image et son double – 15 September – 13 December 2021
Saul Steinberg, entre les lignes – 29 September 2021 – 28 February 2022

Centre Pompidou centres in Europe

Centre Pompidou, Metz

A sister institution of Centre Pompidou, Metz has its own programme, whilst utilising the notoriety and network of its larger sister to draw in popular collections and visitors.

Based in Metz, capital of Lorraine, region in France, the space has been created to offer visitors a unique experience, allowing them the chance to discover artistic creation in numerous forms, with additional events also taking place year-round. Proven popular since its build, Centre Pompidou Metz has become one of the most visited cultural venues in France outside Paris.

Centre Pompidou, Málaga

In the El Cubo building, in front of the beautiful Bay of Málaga, Centre Pompidou Málaga resides as a modern landmark. One of the first centres the Parisian institution has opened outside of France, offering the public a chance to experience the collection of Centre Pompidou.

With Málaga as the birthplace of Picasso and a hugely popular European destination, there is no better place across Spanish territory for this world-famous institution to welcome visitors and tourists alike.

Satellite Museum Plans

New Jersey – With a prospected opening date for early 2024, a new museum aligned with Centre Pompidou, based in New Jersey will open for visitors as a major attraction. The plan outlines to serve the area with a “multidisciplinary art laboratory” for cultural and educational programmes, using the wide range of works as part of the Pompidou’s modern and contemporary art collection.

Asia – A collaboration is already in place already with the West Bund Museum in Shanghai, so curators at Centre Pompidou hope to branch out further across Asia. With plans to open a satellite space within South Korea, plans came to a halt because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hopefully, things will start to progress again when we all return to business as usual.

South America – There have been rumours circulating that a potential pop-up satellite museum could soon be appearing in Brazil, but no details of when or if this project will come off the ground have been confirmed.