Session 4: “Perspectives on decoloniality”

Friday, June 12, 2-5 pm
Free entrance

Presented by Hors champ, this free event is part of the ‘Reflecting on programming: critical and creative gestures’ series. This activity is made possible thanks to the support of Periculum. Foundation for Contemporary Art.

Guests:
Regards Palestiniens: Muhammad El Khairy & Farah Atoui
Regards noirs: Leïka
Coalition des arts de Montreal pour la Palestine: Samuel Garrigó Meza, arts center Articule

Moderator: Chantal Partamian, filmmaker, archivist, and member of Hors champ committee.

Decolonization is not a metaphor, to borrow the title—which has become a slogan—of the article by Eve Tuck and K. Wayne Yang (Decolonization is not a Metaphor, 2012). We may therefore question cinema’s capacity to decolonize—a verb that appears in numerous artistic initiatives and film programs, both locally and internationally—without taking concrete action regarding settler colonialism or the geopolitical sphere.

Entitled “Perspectives on Decoloniality,” this fourth and final session of the series Reflecting on Programming: Critical and Creative Gestures also proposes taking a step back from the verb “to decolonize” in order to frame the issues under discussion realistically and to equip ourselves to consider the possibilities for action inherent in film programming organizations, in the context of decolonization. Rather than focusing on theoretical aspects or the major figures of decolonization, the approach proposed for this session will instead examine and reflect on the many practical dimensions that decoloniality raises for programmers and organizations that curate films and other works, specifically within the context of Montreal.

How is the programming of films and works focused on decolonial struggles carried out in practical organizational terms? What criteria are used to select films? How much consideration is given to the parameters for screening the films and works included in these initiatives? What types of venues and audiences should be targeted, and what kinds of discourse or tone should be adopted during these events?

How should we approach the mediation of the films and works being shown, as well as the work of welcoming audiences and speaking out? How do collectives channel their shared and individual energy? How can we collectively adopt the PACBI (Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel) framework and develop the educational approach that supports it? What strategies can we use to counter acts of censorship?