Events ten years after the fire in the Colectiv club, at UrbanEye. Tragedy “affects us all”

UrbanEye, a film festival dedicated to the city, communities and housing, returns to Bucharest, between October 30 and November 9. The event begins with a series of commemorative events dedicated to the ten years that have passed since the fire in the Colectiv club.

This year's theme of UrbanEye, now in its 12th edition, is “the gap”, seen as absence, but also as a space of reconstruction and new beginnings.

“This year, the festival opens the discussion about the voids that change our city and lives – and how they can become fertile ground for reconstruction and new beginnings“, the organizers say.

The program of the edition begins with a series of commemorative events dedicated to the ten years since the fire in the Colectiv club, with a special thought for Cătălina Ioniţă and Mihai Alexandru, co-founders of UrbanEye.

“Colectiv looks at us all. On the night of October 30, 2015, several young people went to the Colectiv club for rock, friends and the joy of being together at the release of the album Mantras of Wa by the band Goodbye to Gravity. It was an evening like any other where a group of people enjoyed music and freedom, but in a few minutes it would change forever. The fire in the Colectiv left a deep wound in the public consciousness. It was also a moment when an entire country saw itself without filters. It showed how fragile and cracked the systems that are supposed to protect us are, but also how much solidarity pain can give birth to,” writes the UrbanEye Film Festival Facebook page.

The tragedy at Colectiv “continues to stare at us”

The documentary “collective”, directed by Alexander Nanau, nominated in the Best Foreign Film and Best Documentary Film categories at the Oscar Awards 2021, opens the series of screenings within the festival on November 5, from 6:00 p.m., at Cinema Elvire Popesco.

“The film “collective”, signed by Alexander Nanau, follows that first year after the fire. Journalists, whistleblowers, patients and doctors chose not to remain silent and expose a mechanism of corruption and complicity. Ten years later, “collective” continues to look at us. We look back at that moment and try to answer the same questions: What changed? What did we learn? Do we feel more protected? Q&A with director Alexander Nanau and Mihai Grecea, who filmed the Goodbye to Gravity concert that evening. Moderator: Alexandra Tănăsescu (Cultura la Dubă)”say the organizers.

It's been 10 years since the “Colectiv” tragedy. PHOTO UrbanEye

What other events does this year's edition of UrbanEye bring

With the help of commemorative installations and exhibitions, round tables, book launches and short film screenings, the organizers want to pay tribute to them, but also honor their research work about the city, according to a press release from UrbanEye.

On November 1 and 2, first aid demonstrations dedicated to adults and children (10+) will be organized, supported by the Red Cross – Bucharest Sector 6 Branch. Participants will learn how to react quickly and correctly in emergency situations. The workshops will take place at the headquarters of the Romanian Order of Architects and are free, but places are limited and registration is required, inform the organizers.

The festival continues, on November 2 and 3, from 7:30 p.m., at the Bucharest National Dance Center (CNDB), with the theater show “153 seconds”, directed by Ioana Păun. Based on the testimonies of the survivors, the performance becomes an emotional and social x-ray of the fire in the Collective and an interpellation of individual and institutional responsibility.

The films in the selection bring to the fore stories about how emptiness is reflected in personal, collective or urban contexts and how it can become a fertile ground for transformation. The selection maintains a perspective oriented towards resilience and reconstruction: how people, after a trauma, find resources to move on.

“Flowers of Ukraine”, among the documentaries that will run at the festival

Documentation such as “Flowers of Ukraine”, “No Other Land”, “Lowland Kids”, “When a City Falls / When a City Rises”, “The Lions by the River Tigris”, “The Architects of Hope: The First Steps in Rebuilding Ukraine” explores different attempts by people to defend their territory or to rebuild not only walls and streets, but also a sense of belonging.

“We asked ourselves what emptiness means when a part of our city or of us disappears. The films talk about loss, but also about the meaning that can emerge behind. About how communities find continuity and rebuild themselves in a constantly changing world.” said Monica Sebestyen, co-founder of UrbanEye Film Festival.

The special program of archive films, curated by Ana Szel and Andrei Rus, together with Irina Tulbure and Alex Axinte, returns again this year under the title “The fragile city, or how I learned to plan and stop loving ruins”. For three days, the selection brings documentary and utility films (1940-1990) about reactions and planning after moments of crisis. Also, two thematic debates, with special guests, will complete the screenings.

In the UrbanEye tradition, a cinematic portrait is dedicated to a remarkable architect. documentary “Toujours semer – the architecture of Şerban Sturdza” explores the work and philosophy of the architect who, at 77 years old, continues to build connections between craft, heritage, memory and the present. The screening will take place on November 9, from 5:30 p.m., at Cinema Elvire Popesco, and will be followed by a discussion with the director Graţian Gâldău and Şerban Sturdza.

The UrbanEye Film Festival is organized by the Association “ART in dialogue” and is a cultural project co-financed by the Romanian Order of Architects through the Architecture Stamp and the Cultural Fund Administration (AFCN).