From 27 April to 27 May, the platform for film and audiovisual arts, Courtisane, is presenting a retrospective of the works by Yvonne Rainer at CINEMATEK.

On April 19th, R(a/u)pture 1, a new experimental film event, will take place for the first time in Hasselt. The event is organised by the new collective of creators, thinkers, programmers and spectators known as R(a/u)pture.

Last week, German filmmaker and programmer Wolfgang Kolb passed away in Brussels.

On the weekend of 22 March, NW (Netwerk Aalst) is festively opening a brand-new building with a series of new film programmes and exhibitions. The whole weekend will be dedicated to encounters, rituals, films, performances, kitchen stories, workshops, and listening moments.

From Wednesday 27 March to Sunday 31 March, the twenty-third Courtisane Festival will take place in Ghent, Belgium. During the festival, Courtisane, a platform for film and audiovisual arts, will explore the relationships between image and world, aesthetics and politics, experimentation and engagement. Pieter-Paul Mortier, artistic director of the festival, guides us through this year’s programme.

Van woensdag 27 maart tot en met zondag 31 maart vindt het 23ste Courtisane festival plaats in Gent. Tijdens het festival onderzoekt Courtisane, een platform voor film en audiovisuele kunsten, de relaties tussen beeld en wereld, esthetiek en politiek, experiment en engagement. Pieter-Paul Mortier, artistiek en zakelijk leider van het festival, gidst ons door het programma van dit jaar.

From 18 to 31 March, the Cinémathèque française in Paris is hosting a complete retrospective of French filmmaker Nicolas Philibert. The retrospective coincides with the release of Philibert’s new film Averroès & Rosa Parks (2024) in French theatres.

The Italian director Paolo Taviani passed away on the 29th of February. It marks an end to a long cinematic journey which begins back in the 1950's with his life long collaborator and brother Vittorio Taviani.

American film scholar and writer David Bordwell passed away last week on 29 February.

On Sunday 3 March, Kaaitheater in Brussels is showing Route 181: Fragments of a Journey in Palestine-Israel by Eyal Sivan and Michel Khleifi. The film will be shown in the context of Refusing to Disappear, a series of decentralised film screenings and discussions organised by United Screens for Palestine, held in different cities and venues across Belgium to celebrate the rich legacy of Palestinian storytelling through films.

From 29 February to 20 March, Eye Filmmuseum in Amsterdam will screen an extensive retrospective of French filmmaker Claire Denis.

Na tien edities verdwijnt de internationaal gerenommeerde Contour Biënnale voor Bewegend Beeld. De sector van de audiovisuele en beeldende kunsten is een petitie gestart om het verdwijnen van de biënnale te voorkomen.

After ten editions, the internationally renowned Contour Biennial of Moving Images is now slated to disappear. The audiovisual arts sector launched a petition to avert its cancellation.

On Wednesday 21 February, the universities of Ghent, Antwerp, and Namur are collaborating to present a two-day symposium on post-war Belgian cinema. In collaboration with CINEMATEK, five film screenings have also been curated, all of which will be introduced by symposium participants.

From 14 February to 10 March, the Cinémathèque française in Paris is hosting an extensive retrospective of Boris Barnet, one of the most notable figures of Soviet cinema.

Na Fantômas stopt ook het filmtijdschrift Humbug, dat voor het eerst verscheen in 2021, met haar printedities.

From 20 February until 14 May, Cinema RITCS (with the support of UAB (Universitaire Associatie Brussel)), presents ‘The Power of Belgian Cinema’, an assortment of 11 lectures in English by 11 Belgian film scholars on important movements, films, filmmakers in the moving history of Belgian cinema.

Cinema Scope’s editor-in-chief Mark Peranson announced the closure of the Canadian journal.

The 5th edition of Festival En ville! will take place in Brussels cinemas from 29 January to 4 February 2024.

Van donderdag 11 tot en met zondag 14 januari vindt in Eindhoven het Nederlands Silent Film Festival plaats, een festival ter viering van stille films. Het festival biedt 13 filmprogramma’s aan met live muziekbegeleiding in Pand P en het Muziekgebouw Eindhoven.

Sabzian is taking a break. We’ll be back on 8 January. Best wishes and Happy New Year!

Supernova Coop, the cooperative associated with the iconic Cinema Nova in Brussels, has launched a new program to achieve the goal of acquiring their cinema building. The program starts on 11 January and includes a diverse array of films, meetings, exhibitions, concerts, and special events.

Georgian filmmaker Otar Iosseliani, born in 1934 in Tbilisi, passed away yesterday at the age of 89.

Ciné Rio (Ghent) and Cinema Nova (Brussels) welcome you to their first joint Kino Climates symposium!

Art Cinema OFFoff cele­bra­tes its 20th anni­vers­a­ry with a spe­ci­al edi­ti­on of the Night of Experimental Film on 8 December at De Centrale, Ghent.

On Monday the 13th of November, film critic and longtime editor of Positif magazine Michel Ciment died at age 85.

The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) recently found itself embroiled in a controversy as several filmmakers – including Sky Hopinka, Miko Revereza, Maryam Tafakory, Charlie Shackleton, and Basma al-Sharif – withdrew their documentaries over allegations that the festival was stifling Palestinian activists.

Sabzian launches all-new website!

The first and main aim of this all-new design is to make our growing archive more visible and accessible, not least through a number of new features such as the Film Index, Issues, Collections, Screening Room, Audio Room and a further elaborated Search function.

Sabzian lanceert gloednieuwe website!

Het eerste en belangrijkste doel van dit volledig nieuwe ontwerp is om het groeiende archief zichtbaarder en toegankelijker te maken, niet in het minst door een aantal nieuwe functies zoals de Film Index, Issues, Collections, Screening Room, Audio Room en een verder uitgewerkte zoekfunctie.

Your support can help us maintain our quality standards and provide the means to pay for the work of our volunteers. Support Sabzian!

Iranian filmmaker Dariush Mehrjui passed away on October 14th alongside his wife, Vadideh Mohammadifar, after a fatal attack at their home. 

From November 15 to 19, Bozar, ISELP and CINEMATEK invite you back for the sixth edition of the Brussels Art Film Festival (BAFF).