Ulrike Ottinger Retrospective at CINEMATEK

In the coming months, CINEMATEK, in collaboration with the Goethe-Institut and Sabzian, will present an (almost) complete retrospective of Ulrike Ottinger’s oeuvre – a rare event, as her films have been seldom shown in Belgium over the past half-century. The German filmmaker Ulrike Ottinger is a key figure in the revival of (West) German cinema in the 1970s. Though less well-known than many of her predominantly male contemporaries, her feminist, often avant-garde work, marked by a keen sensitivity to LGBTQIA+ themes, is no less significant.

The retrospective, titled Theatrum Mundi, is part of CINEMATEK’s annual Âge d’Or Festival and features a carte blanche by Ottinger. To mark the occasion, Sabzian will publish an interview with Ottinger, along with a series of texts exploring her work. A companion exhibition set up at CINEMATEK will also explore select projects and creative processes from her career.