
(DO NOT) LOOK AT THE FLASH

The atomic bomb in documentary cinema
“Do not look at the flash”. This advice was featured in a British brochure published in the Sixties and it was meant to prevent sightloss during the explosion of an atomic bomb. This brochure was full of tips designed to prepare the population for a nuclear attack, and is full of meaning about the disaster and its perspective as well as the attempts to diminish its consequences.
This perspective has resulted in an imaginary world, heavily used, transformed and questioned in many major fiction films; documentary films, however, allowed other perspectives both in their contents and their forms. Discovering them will sharpen our perception….we will then be able to have a closer look at the flash.
When nuclear weapons are making the headlines again (have they ever ceased to be in the news?), in an international context where some nations are governed by unpredictable and unscrupulous people and where economic interests prevail over ethics, it seemed important to us to remind people of the many challenges presented by the world’s biggest weapon of mass destruction, starting with Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which are dramatically recalled in No More Hiroshima, Wähle das Leben and Prophecy.
Peter Watkins’ film saga The Journey analyses the consequences, persistence and resurgence whilst addressing broader subjects : the nuclear arms race, military expenses, destruction of the environment and mostly the role played by the media and the shortcomings of the education system with respect to the geopolitical context.
The 26 films featured in our selection allow us to explore these subjects further.
With the invention of the atomic bomb the dangers linked to scientific knowledge reach new heights (Le Savoir Dangereux); nuclear testing threatens entire populations (in Herbrich’s and Leuvrey’s films); nuclear arms are proliferating constantly (Peter Greenaway) in spite of opposition from anti-war movements (Karel Reisz, Anand Patwardhan); according to Gunther Anders (“Hiroshima is everywhere” session) humanity is entering a new era and is now capable of self-destruction.
Belgium is also involved with the atomic bomb: in his film, Snake Dance, Manu Riche informs us that uranium extracted in the Belgian Congo was one of the components of the “Little Boy” bomb which destroyed Hiroshima and killed 200,000 people…
The American people have a different approach the subject: experimental work makes it easier to feel the anguish caused by the Cold War (Lipsett, Meyers): The Atomic Cafe recycle propaganda films, both hilarious and scary; in Missile Frederick Wiseman shows us live the young bomb operators in action, their discipline and their ideology.


A.K.A. Serial Killer
Masao AdachiA.K.A. Serial Killer

Also Known As Jihadi
Eric BeaudelaireAlso Known As Jihadi

Angelika
Léopold LegrandAngelika

Armageddon Valley
Emmanuel Van der AuweraArmageddon Valley

Atlal
Djamel KerkarAtlal

Belinda
Marie DumoraBelinda

Bla cinima
Lamine Ammar-KhodjaBla cinima

Boli Bana
Simon Coulibaly GillardBoli Bana

Braguino ou la communauté impossible
Clément CogitoreBraguino ou la communauté impossible

Brothers of the Night
Patric ChihaBrothers of the Night

Burning Out – Dans le ventre de...
Jérôme Le MaireBurning Out – Dans le ventre de l’hôpital

C’est quoi ce travail?
Luc Joulé, Sébastien JousseC’est quoi ce travail?

Nobody Knows Who I Am
Sarah Moon HoweNobody Knows Who I Am

Fighting Through the Night
Sylvain L’EspéranceFighting Through the Night

Body
Benjamin d'AoustBody

A Roundabout in my Head
Hassen FerhaniA Roundabout in my Head

Diurno Doliente (Remember Your Name,...
Marie Brumagne, Bram Van CauwenbergheDiurno Doliente (Remember Your Name, Babylon)

Donna Haraway: Story Telling For...
Fabrizio TerranovaDonna Haraway: Story Telling For Earthly Survival

Dynamite & Field Glasses
Anne FeuillèreDynamite & Field Glasses

A Sea Change
Nina de VroomeA Sea Change

Eldorado XXI
Salomé LamasEldorado XXI

Spectres are haunting Europe
Maria Kourkouta, Niki GiannariSpectres are haunting Europe

The Precariousness of the vertical
Rébecca FruitmanThe Precariousness of the vertical

Funerals (On The Art Of Dying)
Boris LehmanFunerals (On The Art Of Dying)

Good Luck
Ben RussellGood Luck

Grands travaux
Olivia Rochette, Gerard-Jan ClaesGrands travaux

H-H
Chloé MalcottiH-H

Homeland
Sam PeetersHomeland

Inside the Distance
Elias GrootaersInside the Distance

Ghost Hunting
Raed AndoniGhost Hunting

I am a Monster
Tanguy De DonderI am a Monster

Kalès
Laurent Van LanckerKalès

Kazarken (As We Dig)
Güldem DurmazKazarken (As We Dig)

L’authentique procès de Carl...
Marcel HanounL’authentique procès de Carl Emmanuel Jung

The story of the pig (in us)
Jan VrommanThe story of the pig (in us)

The Fullness of Time (Romance)
Manon CoubiaThe Fullness of Time (Romance)

The flower shop
Ruben DesiereThe flower shop

The Great Barrier Reef
Pierre LevieThe Great Barrier Reef

A Man’s Place
Coline GrandoA Man’s Place

The Storm
Dania ReymondThe Storm

Abandoned Land
Gilles LaurentAbandoned Land

The Field of Visions
Boris Van der AvoortThe Field of Visions

The test Garden
Dania ReymondThe test Garden

The Two Faces of a Bamiléké Woman
Rosine MbakamThe Two Faces of a Bamiléké Woman

The Eternals
Pierre-Yves VandeweerdThe Eternals

Letter to my sister
Habiba DjahnineLetter to my sister

Obscure Light
Susana de Sousa DiasObscure Light

Makenzy
Paloma Sermon-DaïMakenzy

Cleaning Schaerbeek
Farah KassemCleaning Schaerbeek

Oltremare (Fascist Colonies)
Loredana BianconiOltremare (Fascist Colonies)

East Shore
Quinten WynsEast Shore

Playing Men
Matjaž IvaniinPlaying Men

Who Are You October?
Julie JaroszewskiWho Are You October?

Rage
Guy-Marc Hinant, Dominique LohléRage

Reconstituirea
Virgil CalotescuReconstituirea

Rhythm & Intervals
Comes ChahbazianRhythm & Intervals

Saints’Game
Amélie Derlon CordinaSaints’Game

Samir in the Dust
Mohamed OuzineSamir in the Dust

If You Ask Me The Question
Siham BouzerdaIf You Ask Me The Question

Sunnyside
Frederik CarbonSunnyside

The Murder of Fred Hampton
Mike Gray, Howard AlkThe Murder of Fred Hampton

The Thin Blue Line
Errol MorrisThe Thin Blue Line

The Tower: A Concrete Utopia
Sammy Baloji, Filip De BoeckThe Tower: A Concrete Utopia

Tre ipotesi sulla morte di Pinelli
Elio PetriTre ipotesi sulla morte di Pinelli

Tremor – Es ist immer Krieg
Annik LeroyTremor – Es ist immer Krieg

Ulysse
Guérin van de VorstUlysse

Warszawa 1956
Jerzy Bossak, Jaroslaw BrzozowskiWarszawa 1956

Winter Soldier
Winter Film CollectiveWinter Soldier

12/02 Danser à tout prix - DJ DE PATOUL & THOM FERRANDO
12/02 Danser à tout prix - DJ DE PATOUL & THOM FERRANDO

Séance courts métrages Tournai
Séance courts métrages Tournai

Séance courts métrages Mons
Séance courts métrages Mons

What are the news from Algerian cinema ?
What are the news from Algerian cinema ?

Séance #1
Séance #1

Séance #2
Séance #2

Séance #3
Séance #3

Séance #4
Séance #4

Daisy Chain
Daisy Chain

Cinema Chemistry – Cinéma Alchimie
Cinema Chemistry – Cinéma Alchimie

Programme 1
Programme 1

Programme 2
Programme 2

Programme 3
Programme 3

Programme 4
Programme 4

Programme 5
Programme 5

Programme 6
Programme 6

Editor’s word
Editor’s word

Workers and filmmakers : resistance and collective creation
Workers and filmmakers : resistance and collective creation

Traces - how the filmmaker puts his marks on reality?
Traces - how the filmmaker puts his marks on reality?

Van Twolips
Van Twolips

Political impact and aesthetic experience
Political impact and aesthetic experience

Why and how to write documentary cinema?
Why and how to write documentary cinema?

Egged On By Music
Egged On By Music

Game Over
Game Over

Surviving The Bomb
Surviving The Bomb

Big Science
Big Science

Collateral Damage?
Collateral Damage?

2201 Atomic Bombs and More
2201 Atomic Bombs and More

The Bomb Made In India
The Bomb Made In India

The Bomb, With The Help Of Belgium
The Bomb, With The Help Of Belgium

Günther Anders : Hiroshima Is Everywhere
Günther Anders : Hiroshima Is Everywhere

Experimental Views On The Bomb
Experimental Views On The Bomb

Duck And Cover
Duck And Cover

Nuclear War Training Exercises
Nuclear War Training Exercises
