Cahiers du cinéma’s Story in History
When Cahiers intersect with French and international history of the last century
ReadThe 1950s: André Bazin and popular education
After the war, movie clubs were on the rise. In particular, André Bazin organized screenings in factories to promote political emancipation, and helped highlight the Italian neorealist movement, steeped in Marxist philosophy.
May 1968: "The Langlois affair"
Among the events of 1968, "the Langlois affair", following the announcement of the dismissal of Henri Langlois as director of the Cinémathèque française movie organization, caused fiery debate. Cahiers took part as François Truffaut led the defense committee for the Cinémathèque.
Special Edition – Cinéma 68 – 1998 (1998)Cahiers du cinéma
Of some meaningless events
"I'm talking to you about solidarity with students and workers, and you're talking to me about tracking shots and close-ups ... You're idiots!" snapped Jean-Luc Godard in 1968. The magazine had always supported a vision of cinema anchored in its time and its political issues.
Cahiers du cinéma n°744 - May 2018 (2018-05)Cahiers du cinéma
May 1968 also saw the organization of the Estates General of French Cinema, and François Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard and other filmmakers who were comrades in the struggle eventually had the Cannes Film Festival cancelled, in a show of support for the student and labor movement.
The 1970s: Cinétracts
From February 1969 to February 1972, Cahiers — influenced by the Maoist and revolutionary movements at the time — published content by Soviet moviemaker Sergei Eisenstein every month and maintained a close link with the Dziga Vertov Group.
The Dziga Vertov Group (named in honor of the director of Man with a Movie Camera, 1929) was made up of Jean-Luc Godard, Jean-Pierre Gorin, Jean-Henri Roger, and Armand Marco. It was active between 1968 and 1972.
Cahiers du cinéma No. 234 / 235 - December 1971 / January-February 1972 (1971-12)Cahiers du cinéma
It rejected the notion of auteur and strove to explore the conditions of the revolutionary struggle through avant-garde cinema, as well as various texts and manifestos sometimes published in Cahiers.
The 1980s: Globalization of perspective
In the 1980s, Cahiers du cinéma showcased an increasingly diverse range of cinema, from new Asian waves (notably Hong Kong) to the increasingly institutionalized American genre.
The 1990s and 2000s: Cinema in all its forms
In the 1990s, the transition to digital technology and the arrival of the internet changed the definition of cinema and its related practices. The magazine questioned the new blurred lines between cinema, video games, video art, and TV series.
The 2010s: Led by the crowd
In the 2010s, the editorial team led by Stéphane Delorme took a very clear political stance, close to a radical left. In the 2020s, consideration of the intertwining of politics and esthetics continued to be explored among Cahiers' pages.
Cahiers du cinéma n°784 - February 2022 (2022-02)Cahiers du cinéma
Several articles and issues were dedicated to the social movements rocking France, specifically the Gilet Jaunes (Yellow Vest) protesters who inspired numerous movies starting in 2018.
Antoine de Baecque dedicated the book Les Cahiers du cinéma : histoire d'une revue, Paris, éd. Cahiers du cinéma, 1991, to this subject.
