La Clef celebrated its takeover by screening committed films from Thursday evening

The independent cinema in the Latin Quarter was bought by the associative collective “La Clef Revival”. To celebrate the event, sessions are scheduled until Sunday, before a final opening planned for 2025; after work.

“We have the keys to La Clef“. After several years of struggle, the formula sounds like an emotional victory. That of the collective “La Clef Revival”, which on Wednesday June 19 became the sole owner of the independent cinema located in the heart of the 5th arrondissement of Paris in the Latin Quarter. The association was evicted from the premises by the police in March 2022, after occupying them for almost three years following the closure of the cinema.

To celebrate the takeover of the cinema, the forty active members organized at short notice an exceptional opening lasting four days. “Everything was done in a hurry” jokes Mona, a member of the collective. The screenings began on Thursday, June 27 at 6 a.m., with the broadcast of Cléo from 5 to 7, directed by Agnès Varda, in the presence of her daughter, the designer Rosalie Varda. “This is the film that was supposed to be shown when we got evicted. It was symbolic to start all over again with its broadcast“, Mona book.

Early Thursday evening, the majority of the members of the collective presented themselves in front of a packed room for the opening session. “We wanted to celebrate this victory, not only among ourselves, but also with YOU” exclaims a member amid long bursts of applause. The cinema owes its renaissance to the launch of a participatory kitty and a fundraising campaign, which reached some 2 million euros.

“We made this cinema a common good“, proudly announces another member on stage. The surprise film chosen to inaugurate this first of four evenings, Cien nornotwe are skipping a train (original title not translated, meaning “One Hundred Children Waiting for a Train”), immediately sets the tone. The 55-minute Chilean documentary, directed in 1988 by Ignacio Aguëro, films film workshops organized by Alicia Vega, a teacher in a poor suburb of Santiago. Enough to leave the room reinforced by an immutable conviction: cinema, a universal art, belongs to everyone.

The independent cinema La Clef, the last to exist in an associative form in the capital, wants to be resolutely committed. With these four days of exceptional opening, the collective hopes to deliver a foretaste of the face that will be displayed by the cultural venue when it finally reopens.

“All sessions will be at free price, programmed collectively with different cycles and varied themes such as queer memories, the history of struggles, or decolonial films” explains Thomas, member of La Clef Revival.

It was also this proposal for an alternative and committed cinema that convinced the donors. Among them, Thibaut, 24, had never crossed its doors before.I discovered La Clef when it was closed, via calls for support on social networks. I participated in the kitty, looking for a committed place. I will come back, it feels good there. HAS the time of king money, this reopening is a great victory“, testifies the intermittent.

Among the patrons, we find some big names in cinema, from Quentin Tarantino to Martin Scorsese.

For now, the kitty has been reactivated. The cinema still needs to be renovated before its definitive reopening to the public, scheduled for September 2025. “There is still work to be done and things to be brought up to standard, particularly accessibility for people with reduced mobility,” explains Mona.

Total cost of the operation: 600,000 euros. “We hope that the Paris city hall and the CNC will be able to finance almost half, but we need to find the remaining 300,000 euros, hence the need for the kitty.“, Thomas adds.

HAS Ultimately, however, the collective aims for complete economic independence. In other words, the objective is to no longer have to depend on public subsidies. A major issue given the political context in France, with the breakthrough of the far right in the European elections, and uncertain legislative elections to come.

“We spoke with alternative cinema networks in Europe, including some in countries where the extreme right is in power. They told us of a massacre, because most of the structures did not own their buildings. The public authorities can then reduce or cut subsidies, or even prohibit the opening of the places.“.

La Clef thus protected itself by becoming the sole owner of the building via an endowment fund. “It’s encouraging, it also shows that there are other models for managing places of culture, and that the struggles pay off. It is necessary that separate islands like this can exist“, rejoices Adèle, 23 years old, spectator who financed the prize pool. “Our project was built so that La Clef becomes a place of resistance“, confirms Thomas.

Once the session is over, the evening ends with pride and hope. Until Sunday June 30, the day of the first round of the legislative elections, several films around the elections and political issues are programmed. The festivities will end with a film concert at 9:00 p.m. With, certainly a close eye on the electoral results.