The COVID-19 emergency has not yet been overcome; in fact, the measures taken by the government and the expected time for recovery suggest that the present phase will last quite a while. It is a matter of fact that movie theatres and places of public entertainment will be the last to reopen and to return to full normalcy.
Acknowledging the gravity of the situation, which has affected everyone’s life, and the uncertainty that derives from it, Bergamo Film Meeting must postpone the 38th edition – which was rescheduled from March to the last week of May – to a date yet to be decided. We are left with no other choice than to wait for the situation to turn for the better.
For years Bergamo Film Meeting has enjoyed a broad audience and strong guest participation: our venues are always crowded in all time slots; the involvement and enthusiasm surrounding the event, always at their highest. This is the festival we know and love: a highly regarded and anticipated event, both locally and internationally.
We are also waiting to hear the decisions that our supporting institutions will make to safeguard the future of Bergamo Film Meeting, to allow us to overcome this challenging year, which we hope we’ll soon be able to consider a transition. Many other festivals in Italy and the rest of Europe are in the same predicament. The entire audio-visual sector – which consists in businesses, cultural organizations and hundreds of thousands of workers – is paying a very steep price for the emergency: venues are closed, new films are not coming out, productions are on hiatus. Yet, even more so these days and although they are not considered “essential”, cinema, the arts and culture have proven to be indispensable for the well-being of the human community. This fact should constitute an extra motivation for the preservation of those events that promote the knowledge of the cinematographic culture. The whole scenario is harrowing, and the lengthening of lockdown measures has already produced devastating consequences.
We love cinema: its ability to touch us profoundly and reveal us unknown universes; the imaginative and fascinating power of its visual storytelling and also its attention to the “real world”. This forced deprivation saddens us deeply, but our hope and desire to come back and share the magic of the silver screen are still strong. In this kind of limbo where we find ourselves, we will continue to engage our audience and followers through our website and social media channels, to stay in touch and wait for better times together.
