Metropolis Cinema is sending out an S.O.S.

Last week, the Metropolis Art Cinema Association started advertising for a fundraising drive on social media, sparking an stir among the community of independent cinema fans in Lebanon. The association has been fighting for the preservation and expansion of independent Lebanese and Arab cinema for the past 13 years. It never thought that, one day, it would have to appeal to the good will of the public and its sponsorship network to survive. "Metropolis is a dynamic space that has always been able to count on the unconditional support of its public," Hania Mroue, director of the association, told L'Orient-Le Jour (OLJ).

In other countries, the audience for independent cinema has diminished over the years. But enthusiasm for the Metropolis Art Cinema Association, housed in two rooms in the Sofil building in the heart of Beirut, is still as strong as ever. The problems it is facing lie elsewhere.

The shaky state of funding

For years now, there has been a decrease in funding that has placed a burden on the handful of aficionados working hard to save genres of cinema that do not comply with the dictates of commercial production or traditional financiers who are interested in return on investment as opposed to artistic creation.

"It's a combination of unfortunate circumstances that led us towards the decision of a fundraising campaign," Mroue said. "Because of the global economic crisis, European funding intended for cultural events has decreased significantly." The funding reductions range from 20 to up to 50 percent, according to Mroue, and it has also become more difficult to find new sponsors. "Apart from some of the sponsors who voluntarily wish to see their names associated with the Metropolis Cinema, it has become increasingly difficult to attract the attention of financial backers," she added.

At the same time, funding from the Ministry of Culture that was supposed to be dispersed two years ago has yet to be delivered. According to Mroue, the Ministry of Culture explained the delay by saying that the Ministry of Finance has been blocking the funds. The Ministry of Finance announced that it was waiting for the 2020 budget before releasing the funds.

On the other hand, the revenue from ticket sales does not benefit the Metropolis Art Cinema Association. Instead, it goes to Circuit Empire, which the two movie theaters belong to.

This combination of unfortunate circumstances led the members of the Metropolis Art Cinema Association to turn to the public for funding. "We are not only trying to save already existing activities, but also to carry out certain projects, including the film library, which is very important to us," said Mroue, who is finalizing a partnership with the Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum.

"We were extremely moved by the reaction of our supporters as well as of local and international partners in regards to our fundraising campaign. Messages are overflowing, and we are already seeing help being materialized,” Mroue continued, conceding, however, that in times of crisis patrons and NGOs tend to channel their funding towards humanitarian causes. "Nonetheless, it is in times such as the ones we are currently going through, and in order not to fall into radicalism and extremism, that we must support culture in all its components," she added.

Facts about the Metropolis Cinema

• Projected 2,000 films from 112 countries in 13 years

• 800,000 spectators

• Organized of 160 festivals, retrospectives, cycles and masterclasses

• Trained 400 young Arab artists

• Launched of 95 Lebanese films

• Home to 70 international stars

• Screened films for 137,000 children

• Created partnerships with 22 NGOs and 50 private and public schools.

* The event will take place on the esplanade of the Sursock Museum on October 1 at 19:30 at the end of the 6th edition of the German Film Week.

(This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour ont he 26th of August)