Erik Gandini Retrospective

We no longer live in an isolated corner of the world. Whether we like it or not, we are all citizens of this planet. With his animated documentary Cosmopolitanism, the Swedish contemporary chronicler Erik Gandini takes the age-old concept of the film's title, revives it and puts it under his cinematic microscope in a colourful defence for cultural and political visions. Like a sociological concept detective, Gandini oscillates between arguments by the movement's supporters and meticulously hand-coloured animations, which illustrate our complex global reality. The animator couple Michelle and Uri Kranot's vibrant visuals ooze life and political restlessness, like an artistic companion to the colourfulness and diversity that the film celebrates and defends. Is the idea of a worldwide community naive and unrealistic? The answer is a resounding: no! It is not only possible, but an imperative necessity. Gandini displays an unshakeable belief in humanism and global cohesion, and in the fact that our ideas and ways of thinking can actually change the world.