agnès varda at ex-centris

It’s not that I don’t like art - I do. But I love seeing original version films in a state-of-the-art independent film house more. Double that sentiment when the building is an architectural treasure.

So imagine my disappointment when I learned that March 19 will be the last day to see a movie at Ex-Centris.

Or that was what I first understood. Apparently, there has been some confusion. After years of supporting auteur and independent films, Ex-Centris is suspending its regular programming.

The key word is regular programming. Cinéma Parallèle will continue to operate, and the facilities will be used for a variety of projects ranging from theatre-style performances to new media productions, as well as cinema presentations that go beyond the traditional experience.

The facilities were designed from the start to offer more than film presentations - and their imminent transformation into multidisciplinary exhibition spaces will accommodate musical performances, interactive installations, and various combinations of stage performance and new technology.

That’s great, but I love movies. So to celebrate the ongoing presence of Cinéma Parallèle, I went to the premier of Agnès Varda’s new visual memoir, Les Plages d’Agnès.

The documentary opens with 80 year old Varda setting up mirrors in the sand. You look into other people’s lives, she says, and you uncover landscapes. Look into her life, and you find beaches.

Whether that’s because she’s always lived on the water (Varda even commuted to the Sorbonne in Paris by boat), or because of the imaginative powers that water evokes, I don’t know. But the opening was original and beautiful.

The film followed her life from childhood, in scenes that were at turns touching, funny and surreal. We met the loves of her life, and the artists who influenced her.

Best of all, the film put Varda’s career in the larger context of art and culture from the 50s to the present. It took us back to the plages de Paris in 68, to protests of the early women’s movement, and Black Panther rallies.

I would probably not have seen Les Plages d’Agnès if not for the impending changes at Ex-Centris. But I’m so glad I did. It’s fitting to welcome a new era of with a look back at what’s come before.