The aim of the project is to make use of movie theaters in areas where there are none or are closing. The idea is to exploit their function as gathering points for cultural and social cohesion, to sow the seeds of environmental and food culture among young people. In brief, this is the aim of Cinema communities for Innovation, Networks and Environment (CINE), a project with which Slow Food, jointly with Italian and international partners, will support movie theaters by strengthening their role in local communities. Slow Food believes in the ability of movie theaters to create a tie among viewers. Even in an era of individual viewing from the comfort of one’s home and a TV connected to endless online content, there may be space for movie theaters, particularly in small communities where they can act as cultural meeting points. Drawing on this concept, the CINE project envisages movie theaters as cultural reference points where people can discuss about topics related to protection of the environment, gastronomic heritage, and with people working in the food sector. To reach this goal, Slow Food is experimenting with a new type of cinema experience: a series of presentations in a program of selected European films created in collaboration with CinemAmbiente and local movie theater operators. Besides these films and documentaries, a side program of tastings and debates will involve local figures engaged in the promotion of environmental and gastronomic sustainability. The CINE format will be rolled out in the area between Bra and Cherasco, Canavese, and Croatia. The innovative feature of the project is that it combines cinema and activism, entertainment and civil engagement. The partners of the CINE project, which is financed by the European Union and coordinated by Slow Food, are the Associazione Cinemambiente, the Mobile Film Festival, the Cinema Boaro di Ivrea, the Cinema Vittoria di Bra, the Croation association Kinookus, and the town of Cherasco.
