Lumière × MYA

On 23 October 2023, the Maastricht Young Academy in collaboration with Lumière Cinema, IHLIA LGBT Heritage, and Vasiliki Belia (PhD candidate) screened the film, "No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer Comics".

No Straight Lines is a documentary about the history of comics by and about LGBTQ people in the USA. It focuses on the career and lives of five pioneers of queer comics, Alison Bechdel, Howard Cruse, Mary Wings, Rupert Kinnard and Jennifer Camper, and it’s built around interviews with them and shorter vignettes of younger LGBTQ comics artists who reflect on the older artists’ work and the influence it has had on them. The film gives us glimpses of the broader historical context in which these artists came of age and shows the interaction of this context with the work they created, how the comics represented LGBTQ lives and struggles and the role they played in strengthening the LGBTQ community’s resilience and emancipation.

The film followed a panel discussion with Christin Höne, Assistant Professor in Literary Studies, Sara De Vuyst, Assistant Professor of Contemporary Visual Culture, and Vasiliki Belia, PhD candidate in the project “Redrawing feminism: graphic narrative engagements with the feminist past” and a Q&A session with members of the audience, chaired by Lotte Lemmens, Assistant Professor in Clinical Psychology. Some of the themes addressed in this lively conversation were: comics as a space of freedom for artistic experimentation and for self-definition, the connections between the history of comics and that of LGBTQ activism, intergenerational solidarity and the importance of knowing the history of social movements.

On Monday, May 22nd the Maastricht Young Academy in collaboration with Lumiere Cinema screened the documentary “Tax Me if You Can”. This documentary on capital flight and tax evasion is a crystal-clear, educational, humorous and shocking plea about the favorite sport of the super-rich. The screening was followed by an interactive panel discussion with dr. Andreea Nastase, assistant professor in Public Policy at FASOS, dr. Marina Serrat Romani, assistant professor in the department of tax law at the faculty of Law, and dr. Esperanza Buitrago Diaz, senior researcher at the Maastricht center for Taxation. Taking the audiences questions and remarks into consideration the event ended with further exchange and drinks at Lumière’s bar.

On February 27th 2023, MYA hosted a screening of White Balls on Walls in collaboration with Lumière cinema. It was very well attended and attracted a broad and diverse audience. The film was a thought-provoking documentary following the team of the Stedelijk museum in Amsterdam, reflecting on the struggles of historical and cultural institutions to strive for more diversity. After the film, a panel discussion took place with Dr Olga Van Oost, director of FARO and museologist at Vrije Universiteit Brussel, MFA Juan Pablo Pacheco Bejarano, artist, writer, and guest professor at the Royal Academy of Arts at The Hague, Dr Louis van den Hengel, Assistant Professor of Gender Studies at Maastricht University and Prof. Dr Emilie Sitzia, Special Chair at the University of Amsterdam (Word and Image) and Associate Professor Cultural Education at Maastricht University. Among other questions, we discussed the notion of 'artistic quality' and whether it is a social and ethical category rather than an aesthetic one, the role of the public in driving this debate, and the idea of meritocracy. The audience also asked several questions and the discussions were further continued at the bar around a drink. 

On November 7th 2022, the MYA hosted a screening of "Ich bin dein Mensch" (in English: "I am your Man") in collaboration with Lumière cinema. The film is a witty tragicomedy about artifical intelligence, happiness, and relationships. Funny and thought-provoking, the event was well-received and the night was a success with around 120 tickets sold. The screening was followed by a panel discussion where we were joined by Dr Flora Lysen, Dr Philip Nickel, Tara Miranovic, and Prof. Mark Winands, experts in cultural analysis of science and media, philosophy of technology, digital society and AI. We addressed questions like what it means to be human, the reciprocity of humans learning from machines and vice versa, whether we are happy when our desires are fulfilled, and how realistic such an AI may be. The discussions continued at the Lumière bar where everyone received two free drinks!

On May 16th 2022, the MYA hosted a screening of "How to Kill a Cloud" in collaboration with Lumière cinema. Progress in science requires funding, and funding always comes with political interests. How to Kill a Cloud is a story about the tension between advancing the real-world impacts of science, and the political and ethical challenges posed by actually trying to get results. Joined by Prof. Wiebe Bijker, Dr Clemens Driessen, and Prof. Sjaan Nederkoorn, our panel discussion explored questions like power interests and their effects on science funding, the pressure to deliver concrete, positive results vs the objective to create ‘good science’ and more broadly the life and struggles of research life.

On February 21st 2022, the MYA hosted a screening of "The Assistant" in collaboration with Lumière cinema. The movie provided a searing look at the life of a powerful executive’s assistant who grows increasingly aware of the abusive cycle from employers that threatens every aspect of her position. The movie portrayed an example of how a person trying to do the right thing, while also trying to succeed professionally, can become complicit. The panel discussion that followed was led by Dr Sarah Stutterheim, Dr Inken Gast, and Monique Lundh, and stressed the importance of healthy relationships between colleagues and managers for one’s personal wellbeing. Through audience engagement, it was highlighted that structural support in policy and law and the need of confidential advisors play a pivotal in achieving well-being in the workplace.

On November 30 2021, the MYA hosted a screening of "Picture a Scientist" in collaboration with Lumière cinema in Maastricht. The documentary provides an insightful and emotive narrative of the experiences of women scientists in their fields of work. The film drew on the experiences of the older generation of women in STEM, who advocated for the equality of representation, pay and working space for women in science, where these factors were better for their male colleagues at the time. Although these measurable aspects have somewhat changed in some contexts, contemporary women in science, and particularly women of colour, are still subjected to hardships - from unwanted sexual attention and harassment to subliminal exclusion and unsolicited critique. The screening of the documentary was followed by a panel discussion given by Lisa Brüggen, Leo Köhler and Pamela Habibovic, and Lauren Wagner as the moderator, where the personal experiences of the speakers in relation to the film were shared and ways forward for women in science were discussed. The overarching narrative of the documentary and the panel discussion pointed toward making the sciences increasingly intersectional and equitable for a greater inclusion of the next generations of (women) scientists. Food for thought was left with all of the attendees of the event. Watch the insights here. 

On November 1st 2021, the MYA hosted a screening of "Midnight Traveler" in collaboration with Lumière cinema. The film showcased the migration story of a fleeing family from Afghanistan. For four years, filmmakers Hassan Fazili and Fatima Hossaini and their two young daughters were living in uncertainty as they tried to get asylum in Europe while documenting their eventful journey with only three smartphones. The documentary gives a first-person viewpoint on the danger, anxiety, and solitude the family experienced during their journey as challenges faced by many in the same difficult circumstances. Yet, it also shows their hope, strength, and ability to remain positive given their situation. The screening was followed by an insightful panel discussion about refugee and asylum conditions and the complicated government actions, institutions, and the pivotal role they play in migration. Taking the audiences questions and remarks into consideration the event ended with further exchange and drinks at Lumière’s bar.