The Cinemateca Portuguesa honors projectionists

  • December 30, 2025
Playing on the meaning of the Latin word ‘focus’ referring to ‘fire’, filmmaker Jean-Marie Straub used to say that when filming a scene, one should strive for incandescence, i.e. setting film on fire. Since focusing is as crucial for projection as for filming, Cinemateca Portuguesa’s January 2026 program could very well be the counterpart of this idea. Drawing on the flammable nature of motion picture film when it was made of celluloid, this cycle, entitled Uma Cinemateca em Chamas – Histórias de Projeção e Projecionistas (“A cinematheque on fire – histories of projection and projectionists”) will pay a fiery tribute to the materiality of film and the work of projectionists.The selection of films will cover a wide range of genres and geographic origins, from the Lumière brothers’ experiments to contemporary works shot and shown on film...
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A film projection workhop in Tunisia

  • November 18, 2025
 Interview with Lilia Ben Achour from Focus Archive, who recently set up a film projection workshop in G...
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‘Film on Film’ again!

  • April 9, 2025
The British Film Institute just revealed the lineup for the 2025 Film on Film Festival, to be held June 12-15 at the BFI Southbank...
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filmprojection21.org was launched in 2016 in conjunction with the release of the Charter of Cinematographic Projection in the 21st Century, which was quickly signed by numerous film festivals, archives, venues, filmmakers, programmers, etc., that care about photochemical film projection. By signing the charter, these organizations and individuals made a commitment to prioritize showing film on film whenever a print was available and to duly announce the material nature of what they were showing in their programs.

In 2016, the conversion of commercial cinema chains to digital projection was still recent in most parts of the world, and the experience of film projection, though clearly endangered, was still relatively common. Time has passed, and ten-odd years later, photochemical film projection is in a more critical situation, while also becoming more valued as its rarity appeals to new audiences. READ THE EDITORIAL