Instalation of billboards of San Sebastian Festival (1978) / Foto Gallego (Kutxateka)

From their emergence in the mid-twentieth century to the present day, film festivals have been witnesses and active agents in processes of crisis and urban transformation. The history of festivals is also a spatial history: the re-signification of tourist locations, the reconstruction of European capitals after the Second World War, the promotion of major architectural landmarks and urban reform projects at the dawn of the 21st century. Today, major film festivals face two new interrelated challenges that question their relationship with urban space. On the one hand, the new habits of digital distribution and consumption seem to have called into question the traditional model of collective and in-person exhibition. On the other, the COVID crisis has accelerated the closure of many cinemas, contributing to a paradigm shift in the urban landscape. This round table brings together representatives of the main European film festivals to consider, from different perspectives, the spatial history of festivals, their current challenges and their future prospects.   

Organised by: San Sebastian International Film Festival and Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola