Who said there are no art cinemas in Lima? In the Alliance Française a new screen is born for moviegoers

A family gathers in the city of Marseille to celebrate the birth of little Gloria. Although everyone is happy, life in this port is hard and everyone lives hard times. The plot of “Gloria Mundi”, a film by French filmmaker Robert Guédiguian, could also be read as a metaphor for the new movie theater that lights up the French alliance de Lima: a brand new space that, in the midst of the crisis caused by the pandemic and the poor supply of movie theaters (almost kidnapped by the ‘blockbusters’), gives hope to the public that is also interested in other ways filmic.

As a filmmaker, Guédiguian is interested in the human comedy of the popular classes, in the manner of a contemporary Balzac. The premiere of his “Gloria Mundi”, to be screened on Thursday at 7:30 pm, is part of La Noche de las Ideas, an event that is held every year on the French cultural network, and in which, throughout of one night, they reflect on an agreed theme: This year, the slogan is “(Re)build together”.

As Fréderic Robinel, new cultural director of the Alliance Française, points out, the new art cinema is a reality thanks to the donation of state-of-the-art projection equipment by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the country’s embassy Gaul in Lima.

“For us, the concept of ‘(Re)building together’ becomes very concrete with the inauguration of this new movie theater, which has the same projector as the best commercial theaters. That for us is very important, because it lays the foundations to build a project in Lima around cinema.“, Explain.

Robinel points out that this donation speaks volumes about the international interest in what happens in local cinema. “It is evident that we live a very interesting movement. Recently, the Locarno Film Festival (Switzerland) contacted us so that we could contact them with Peruvian filmmakers. They came to meet them and make a selection to invite them to the festival“, Explain.

As the cultural director of the Alliance Française points out, this new room with a capacity for 90 seats will function along three axes: Training activities for professionals and the public will also be developed around it.

The inauguration, scheduled for this Thursday, January 27, will be attended by the Minister of Culture, Gisela Ortiz, along with officials from the French Embassy and the Alliance Française, as well as representatives of the local film industry.

Thus, in addition to this inaugural act, The Night of Ideas will continue virtually through the website of the French embassy, ​​with the participation of the Research Institute for Development (IRD), the French Institute of Andean Studies (IFEA ) and the French Alliance.

Place: French Alliance. Address: Av. Arequipa 4595, Miraflores. Date and time: Thursday, January 27, 6 pm (opening ceremony of La Noche de las Ideas); 6:30 pm (opening of the movie theater); 7:30 pm (performance of “Gloria Mundi”, by Robert Guédiguian). Inscription: [email protected]