Leen Engelen

Kris Van Heuckelom

The past three decades have seen the rise of a transnational European cinema, not only in terms of production, but also in terms of a growing focus on multi-ethnic themes within the European context. The collapse of the Iron Curtain and the subsequent (and on-going) enlargement of the European Union have played a major role in this shift from national to trans-European filmmaking. Its most obvious on-screen manifestation is the increased visibility of immigrant groups from former communist countries, ranging from Krzysztof Kies ́lowski’s Blanc (1994) and Pawel Pawlikowski’s Last Resort (2000) to Hans-Christian Schmid’s Lichter (2003), Ken Loach’s It is a Free World (2007) and Bobby Paunescu’s Francesca (2009). Through its focus on cinematic representations of post-1989 migration from the former Eastern Bloc to Western Europe, When East and West Meet seeks to examine what these films reveal about the cultures producing and consuming these migration narratives and to what extent these images function as a site for new (trans)regional, (trans)national and European identities. When East Meets West explicitly crosses the boundaries of national cinemas and sets out to uncover an array of common tropes and narrative devices that characterize the influences and portrayals of immigration from the former Eastern Bloc.

Screening East-West Mobility

European Cinema after the Wall

Roel Vande Winkel

This volume addresses the representation of European history in European cinema through a collection of nine case studies such as Der Untergang (2004) and Dawn (1928).

Perspectives on European Film and History

Jan Schmidt

Rajesh Heynickx

Luc Verpoest

Pieter Uyttenhove

Pieter Verstraete

The challenges of post-war recovery from social and political reform to architectural design In the months and years immediately following the First World War, the many (European) countries that had formed its battleground were confronted with daunting challenges. These challenges varied according to the countries' earlier role and degree of involvement in the war but were without exception enormous. The contributors to this book analyse how this was not only a matter of rebuilding ravaged cities and destroyed infrastructure, but also of repairing people’s damaged bodies and upended daily lives, and rethinking and reforming societal, economic and political structures. These processes took place against the backdrop of mass mourning and remembrance, political violence and economic crisis. At the same time, the post-war tabula rasa offered many opportunities for innovation in various areas of society, from social and political reform to architectural design. The wide scope of post-war recovery and revival is reflected in the different sections of this book: rebuild, remember, repair, and reform. It offers insights into post-war revival in Western European countries such as Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Portugal, Spain, and Italy, as well as into how their efforts were perceived outside of Europe, for instance in Argentina and the United States.

Rebuild, Remember, Repair, Reform

Revival After the Great War

Leen Engelen

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