Film for territorial and sensory investigations (Panel)

An ever-increasing number of films direct their focus towards the contested nature of architecture, housing, and urban redevelopment in cities. This is evidenced by the increasing popularity of film festivals dealing with the specific topic of architecture and the city across the world that are attended by diverse audiences, including researchers, policy makers, filmmakers, and general public. Some noteworthy festivals that have emerged in the recent years include - the Open City Documentary Festival organised by the UCL Urban Lab since 2011, the Urban Eye film festival in Bucharest, the Architecture film festivals of London, Rotterdam, and Copenhagen, and the Urban Lens film festival organised by the IIHS in India. Architecture and urban films have allowed for generative crossovers for architecture practice as films offer sensorial, observational, relational, and liminal possibilities that transcend beyond the textual and image based representations of architecture and urban space.