Europe
Brexit – Behind Closed Doors
On the day Boris Johnson promised Britain would leave the EU, we screen the gripping, untold (and occasionally jaw-dropping) story of Brexit negotiations from the other side. For two years, Belgian film-maker Lode Desmet had exclusive access to the Brexit co-ordinator of the European parliament, Guy Verhofstadt, and his close-knit team. His two-part fly-on-the-wall film captures the off-the-record conversations and arguments as they devise their strategy for dealing with the British.
The Fight for Catalan Independence
Join our panel of experts to discuss what will happen next for the region as the events unfold.
The Alt-Right in Global Politics
Who is behind the Alt-Right movement and what do they want? Are they gaining an outsized influence on global politics? Join us for a panel discussion, analysing the varying impact the movement has had in the US and across Europe, as well as the increasing splinter groups straying from the umbrella of the Alt-Right, and what this means for the future of the movement.
The Future of Turkey and the EU
In the backdrop of Turkey’s April referendum, escalating tensions between Turkey and major European powers has signalled a new era of hostile relations. President Erdogan’s bid to radically remodel the parliamentary system in Turkey has led to opposition groups fearing the creation of one-man rule. The Turkish government, which has been carrying out brutal crackdowns on political dissenters following the failed coup last year, is now looking toward European countries as a stage to strengthen its agenda. Our panel will reflect on President Erdogan’s fraught relationship with the EU in the context of the country’s political future after the April referendum.
Covering Brexit: The View from Abroad
Of the many questions that remain to be addressed as Brexit negotiations commence are the status of EU nationals resident in the UK, and how Europeans will be economically and socially impacted by the UK’s exit of the EU. Meanwhile official reaction on the continent to the high court’s ruling on article 50 has been quiet, with national governments regarding the decision as an internal matter. We will be joined by EU correspondents and European journalists to discuss European reactions to Brexit negotiations and explore how UK press coverage matches up to sentiments on the continent.
Nationalism in Europe: Will Le Pen Take the Presidency?
Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-right Front National, is expected to reach the final round in this year’s French presidential election. As centre-right candidate Francois Fillon battles a financial scandal, Le Pen could end up facing the liberal former banker, Emmanuel Macron – who is running his first ever election campaign. With the first round of voting approaching in April, we will be discussing the significance of this election for France and the EU, and exploring who could come out on top.
The Editor’s View: Emma Tucker and Roy Greenslade In Conversation
Readers across the political spectrum are calling for new standards of accuracy and impartiality. In a new series of exclusive talks hosted by journalist Roy Greenslade, we are bringing together today’s leading news editors to discuss editorial policies and press freedom in an era of polarising politics.
Al Jazeera Preview Screening: The Making and Breaking of Europe + Q&A
This special two-part series explores the interwoven history of the European project and the far right in postwar Europe – both East and West. Beginning with the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community from the ashes of World War II, we chart the trajectory of European integration, in tandem with the story of the European far right, recounting the series of shifts that have led to today’s critical juncture: a post-Brexit EU and a stark rise in support for far right parties across Europe.
The Editor’s View with Roy Greenslade: Tackling Fake News
As the public respond to rapid political changes in Europe and America, a digital-age quandary is emerging around editorial policies of newspapers during times of political transition. In a new series of exclusive talks hosted by journalist Roy Greenslade, we are bringing together today’s leading news editors to discuss, directly with their readers, issues related to editorial policies and press freedom in an era of polarising politics.
Breaking Point: The EU Referendum and its Aftermath
There are some things about Brexit that we simply can’t know. No amount of opinion pieces, panel discussions, or leaked memos will change that. As Iain Macwhirter, a political commentator for the Herald and Sunday Herald, quipped, ‘We all know that Brexit means Brexit, but nobody knows what Brexit means!’ So, what does Brexit mean?
Breaking Point: The EU Referendum and its Aftermath
Prime Minister Theresa May has announced she will trigger the formal Brexit negotiation process by the end of March 2017. Drawing on analysis of official and off-the-record meetings with senior politicians as well as with ordinary voters, we will be joined by a panel of experts to discuss where post-referendum Britain is heading, how we got here, and what lessons might be learned.
Inside the Nauru Files: Investigating Refugee Detention Centres
More than 2,000 leaked incident reports from Australia’s detention camp for asylum seekers on the remote Pacific island of Nauru were published in The Guardian in August. Sparking outrage from the international community, the Nauru files set out the shocking details of assaults, sexual abuse, self-harm attempts, child abuse and poor living conditions endured by asylum seekers held by the Australian government – painting a picture of a dysfunctional asylum processing system. We will be joined by a panel of journalists, migration experts and human rights defenders to discuss their initial reactions to the Nauru files, the implications of the reports and how a group of journalists broke a story from within a detention centre that has remained historically off-limits to journalists.
Patrick Kingsley’s New Odyssey
Harriet Agerholm sat down with The Guardian‘s migration correspondent and author Patrick Kingsley to discuss his latest book, The New Odyssey: The Story of Europe’s Refugee Crisis.
Filmed and edited by Adam Barr.
Europe’s Refugee Crisis – The New Odyssey
“I felt like [the whole of] Syria was on a dinghy. And we were not welcome.” – Hassan Akkad Heated discussion on the issue of Europe’s crisis in handling the arrival of refugees took place at the Frontline Club on Wednesday 4 May.
The New Odyssey: The Story of Europe’s Refugee Crisis?
Europe is experiencing a wave of migration not seen since the end of World War II. Forced out of their homes by terror and war in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, pulled to Europe by the prospect of a better life, huge numbers are risking everything in perilous journeys across land and sea.
Joined by the Guardian‘s inaugural migration correspondent Patrick Kingsley, whose new book The New Odyssey documents these journeys, we will explore what failures lead to the current crisis and what needs to be done to avert it.
In Photos: The Future of Europe
Photographer Tolly Robinson captured last week’s panel discussion on the EU. From the aftermath of the Brussels attacks to June’s impending Brexit vote, the event chaired by journalist Gavin Hewett debated the future of Britain and Europe.
Screening: My Jihad + Q&A
In the last year alone over 400 young Belgians have traveled to Syria. In My Jihad, reporter Rudi Vranckx visits the region of Vilvoorde to investigate why a number of young Belgians from the area are becoming radicalised, and how leaders of the Muslim community are working to combat this trend.
After the Iran Deal
By Dimple Vijaykumar On Wednesday 2 September 2015, the Frontline Club hosted a debate on what the recent Iran nuclear agreement could mean for the country, the region and relations with the West. Just a few hours before the event, it was announced that President Obama had secured enough support in the Senate to ensure […]
Those Who Feel the Fire Burning: A Refugee’s Perspective
By George Symonds On Friday 19 June 2015, the Frontline Club held a screening of the genre-defying Those Who Feel the Fire Burning, an experimental film focusing on the experiences of those who risk their lives in order to reach the shores of Europe. The audience was joined by co-producer Katja Draaijer for a discussion following the screening.
Screening: Those Who Feel the Fire Burning + Q&A
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Morgan Knibbe.
Conflict, economic crisis, and depleting environmental resources are driving increasing numbers of people to attempt the treacherous journey across the Mediterranean to Europe. Those Who Feel the Fire Burning, Morgan Knibbe‘s innovative and genre-blurring film, places viewers in the perspective of a person who has begun this dangerous and desperate journey to Europe by sea.
Screening: Gottland + Q&A
This screening will be followed by a discussion with author Mariusz Szczygieł.
The Frontline Club is delighted to partner with the Polish Institute and the 13th Kinoteka Polish Film Festival to bring you a screening of Gottland, directed by Viera Cákanyová, Petr Hátle, Rozálie Kohoutová, Lukás Kokes, Radovan Síbrt, and Klára Tasovská. Gottland is a cross-genre film based on selected parts of the international bestseller Gottland: Mostly True Stories from Half of Czechoslovakia (European book of the year 2009) by Mariusz Szczygieł.
The Great European Disaster Movie
By Francis Churchill “We are in an aeroplane, and we don’t know who is driving the aeroplane. We are in a storm and we don’t know what is happening to us…”. This was the idea that Annalisa Piras wanted to entertain in her new film, The Great European Disaster Movie, which previewed at the Frontline Club […]
BBC Storyville Preview: The Great European Disaster Movie + Q&A
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Annalisa Piras and executive producer Bill Emmott.
Following the success of Girlfriend in a Coma, director Annalisa Piras brings us an artfully constructed depiction of how Europe is sleepwalking toward disaster, starring Angus Deayton in fiction scenes from a post-EU future. Piras pairs an imagined view from a dystopian future with insightful analysis on how and why things are going so wrong by ordinary Europeans and economic and political experts.
Screening: Days of Hope + Q&A
Every year thousands of Africans leave their families behind in search of a better life in Europe. Ditte Haarløv Johnsen‘s intimate portrayal of everyday life after emigration explores the lives of three very different African immigrants, from three different places, who have embarked on a perilous journey to reach a common destination: Europe. With rawness and dignity, Days of Hope presents personal experiences of migration and the individual struggles faced by African immigrants in Europe. This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Ditte Haarløv Johnsen.
Gay marriage bill vote in France, Navalny trial in Russia, and US growth data – world week ahead
By Jasper Wenban-Smith, International Editor, Foresight News A round up of world news in the week ahead from journalist resource ForesightNews. Monday April 22 Foreign Ministers from the European Union, including British Foreign Secretary William Hague, meet in Luxembourg on Monday. Among other things, they are expected to agree to lift remaining sanctions […]
A country’s struggle between the glamourous world of Eurovision and the unrealistic demand for democracy
By Caroline Schmitt The screening of “Amazing Azerbaijan!” on Thursday, 11th April was followed by a Q&A with the film’s director Liz Mermin. The film contrasts the two-faced Azerbaijan: on one hand there was the glamour before and during Eurovision, carefully constructed by the government; the other side is that investigative journalists like Khadija Ismayilova regularly […]
FULLY BOOKED Screening: Girlfriend in a Coma + Q&A
Followed by a Q&A with director Annalisa Piras and Bill Emmott, former editor-in-chief of the Economist and author of Good Italy, Bad Italy: Why Italy Must Conquer Its Demons to Face the Future.
Exploring the past 20 years of Italy’s history Girlfriend in a Coma argues that the current economic predicament is part of a wider political, social and moral failure.
Insight with Lydia Cacho: Slavery Inc.
The international sex trade criss-crosses the globe using a sinister network, in a ground-breaking new work of investigative reporting internationally renowned Mexican journalist and campaigner Lydia Cacho follows the trail of the traffickers and their victims from Mexico to Turkey, Thailand to Iraq, Georgia to the UK.
Lydia Cacho will be joining us at the Frontline Club in conversation with executive director of Article 19, Dr Agnès Callamard to talk about her expansive investigation into this world and the work she does reporting on domestic violence, child prostitution, organised crime and political corruption, whilst teaching workshops on how to help victims of trafficking.
Screening: Ukraine – From Democracy to Chaos + Panel Debate
In Ukraine: From Democracy to Chaos Jill Emery and Jean-Michel Carre explore this complex country, its geopolitical importance in Europe, and its unfinished struggle for democracy.
Part 2: Frontline Club discusses Italian press after Berlusconi
By Charlene Rodrigues Interestingly, condemnation of Berlusconi’s media involvement was not wholesale. Paolo Mancini, professor at the University of Perugia said: “Everyone here will expect me to say one thing but I don’t think Berlusconi is controlling the media. It’s overstated.” “Berlusconi tried to limit freedom of journalists but he did not succeed because there […]