About us

How, in a transnational society, can a new kind of cinema be collectively shaped?
 
With SİNEMA TRANSTOPIA, launched in 2020 at Haus der Statistik on Alexanderplatz,  bi'bak initiated a cinema experiment underpinned by an understanding of cinema as a space of social discourse, exchange and solidarity. At its new location in Berlin-Wedding, SİNEMA TRANSTOPIA establishes itself as a transnational space for film culture, art, knowledge and community, creating a bridge between urban space and film as cultural practice. Here a place is created where urbanity and transnationalism coexist, a place that enables access, stimulates discussion, educates, moves, provokes and encourages.

"Transtopia" is the term used by migration researcher Erol Yıldız to describe spaces “where transnational ties and connections converge, are reinterpreted, and condense into everyday contexts.” Following on from this, SİNEMA TRANSTOPIA links geographies both near and far, taking into consideration their narratives, pasts, presents and futures. Cinema here becomes a meeting place where people come together not only to witness film, but to experience a space of lively discourse, of living, working and learning together. SİNEMA TRANSTOPIA thus stands for a cinema that sees itself as a social place simultaneously committed to local and international communities, one that regards film-historical work as the work of cultural remembrance and that is dedicated to a diversity of film culture and film art.

SİNEMA TRANSTOPIA is a project by bi'bak.

Team

Artistic Direction
Malve Lippmann, Can Sungu

Text Editing, Translation
Bethan Hughes

Communications
Duygu Atçeken, Bethan Hughes

Programm Coordination
Galo E. Rivera

Management 
Anna Krauss

Communications Assistance
Gülsen Namıduru

Cinema of Commoning Editorial
Eirini Fountedaki, Rachel Pronger

Projectionists
Anand Angarag, Aghyad Abou Koura, Florian Höhensteiger, Clelia Flores, Johee Oh

Box Office, Event Coordination
Nora Chirikure, Galo E. Rivera, Anna Simbeck, Rodrigo Aguilera

Graphic Design
Jan Grygoriew / jangry.com

Web Programming
Nils Poltmann

Curators

Enoka Ayemba
Hadi Alipanah
Iskandar Abdalla
Sun-ju Choi
Popo Fan
Ahmet Gürata & John Sundholm
Yaella Gottlieb
Tara Balok & Luisa Matthias
Ehsan Khoshbakht
Merle Kröger & Mareike Bernien
Malve Lippmann
Afsun Moshiry
Léa Morin
Irit Neidhardt
Thaís Omine
Lisabona Rahman
Galo E. Rivera
Arindam Sen
Promona Sengupta
Sebahattin Şen
Can Sungu
Slavs & Tatars
Darunee Terdtoontaveedej
Sarnt Utamachote
Gary Vanisian
Tang Xuedan Echo
und andere...