EAST—WEST: The Border Through Film and History

The multi-year project EAST—WEST: The Border Through Film and History focuses on exploring life along the Slovenian-Italian border.

A border is often perceived as a marker of division—separating "us" from "them," the familiar from the unknown, nations from each other. However, Europe's tumultuous history shows that borders are not natural barriers but spaces of constant transformation, serving as points of transition, exchange, and interaction.

The project boasts an extensive and diverse partnership network, reflecting the complexity of this multi-year initiative. Through moving images and a wide range of activities—including symposiums, retrospectives, exhibitions, publications, documentary productions, restoration and digitization processes, and educational materials—the project seeks to honor and share our common heritage, presenting it on an international stage. Collaborating with film archives such as Archivio Storico Istituto Luce, the Slovenian Film Archive at the Archive of the Republic of Slovenia, and various cinematheques in Slovenia, Italy, and beyond, the initiative aims to showcase works that have previously been less accessible to the broader public.

As part of the multi-year EAST—WEST: The Border Through Film and History project, an international retrospective will be organized in 2025. This event will take place in major European cities, featuring screenings of selected feature film classics and archival documentary materials to promote and reflect on our shared cross-border region. The project forms part of the European Capital of Culture GO! 2025 program and builds upon the content within EPICenter, which focuses on narrating the turbulent past and 20th-century history along the Slovenian-Italian border.

The first activities of the project were held in May 2022 during the inaugural international symposium, hosted in Nova Gorica, Gorizia, Ljubljana, and Trieste.

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In May 2023, the second international symposium took place, hosted in Gorizia and Ljubljana.

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New activities took place in May 2024.

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We invite you to explore the engaging content on our new website, entirely dedicated to the project.

Additionally, visit our YouTube channel, where you can find fascinating materials and contributions from our guests.