Cinemed opens in Montpellier after an emergency venue change
The Mediterranean film festival begins with 239 titles and a new main base at Pathé Comédie after storm damage made part of Le Corum unusable.
The 48th Cinemed festival opens in Montpellier on 16 October with a programme of 239 titles from across the Mediterranean. This year's edition had to reorganise shortly before opening because severe weather damage left part of Le Corum, its usual main venue, unavailable.
Pathé Comédie is taking over a large share of the screenings, with Centre Rabelais and other city cinemas also participating. Montpellier's tourist office advises ticket holders to check the venue attached to each session. The change keeps the festival running, but it means familiar routes and room names from earlier editions may no longer apply.
The programme spans competition, heritage and new regional work
The opening film is Nanni Moretti's Les Cœurs affamés, presented in its first French screening on Friday evening. The festival runs through 24 October. Cineuropa reports that nine fiction features are competing for the Antigone d'Or, within a programme that also includes shorts, documentaries, restored films and regional work.
The programme looks beyond a single premiere. The CNC highlights a focus on young Egyptian cinema and a strand devoted to fantasy cinema from Arab Mediterranean countries. Montpellier's Saison Méditerranée programme also connects the festival to professional meetings with Aflamuna, a Lebanese organisation supporting independent Arab cinema.
A festival is also professional infrastructure
Cinemed Meetings will address production as well as exhibition. The CNC lists discussions about professional opportunities for disabled actors and about cooperation among Mediterranean filmmakers. These sessions matter because festivals are marketplaces and working spaces as well as public screening programmes.
The venue disruption adds a practical test of resilience. Cineuropa says Pathé and other partners helped the organisers rebuild the schedule after torrential weather. That response should not be confused with a return to normal conditions at Le Corum, and WHIF is not inferring the extent or repair timetable of damage beyond the published notices.
For audiences, the useful approach is simple: choose a film or strand, then confirm the latest time, cinema and ticket status on the official programme. For the festival, successfully presenting 239 titles after a late move would demonstrate how a cultural network can absorb a local shock without reducing Mediterranean cinema to one building.
Sources & context
Reporting and reference material used for this article. Context sources do not independently confirm every news claim.
- Cinemed ↗Primary programme, accessed 16 October: dates, screenings, opening night and practical information.
- Centre national du cinéma ↗Primary public-sector context, 12 October: venue change, programme strands and professional discussions.
- Cineuropa ↗Independent industry reporting, 15 October: 239 titles, competition count and emergency reorganisation.
- Montpellier Tourist Office ↗Local practical source, accessed 16 October: participating venues, dates and visitor information.
Written for WHIF from the linked material. This article does not claim on-the-ground reporting. Our editorial standards.