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What’s on this week: 12-18 February
Brussels’ festival dedicated to animated film is not sitting out its 40th edition out, but putting the whole shebang online. Just in time for the February school holiday, Anima is the place to see the best animation of recent years for all ages. Whether you are three or 93, you will find shorts and features to suit your taste. For this anniversary edition, the festival is looking back at the history of animation, so expect to see classics as well as documentaries on the subject. And in celebration of a new Belgian book on stop-motion animation (think Tim Burton and Wallace and Gromit), a special section is devoted to the style. 12-21 February
Speaking of the school holiday, Brussels museums have much on offer to spend family time meaningfully. Check out Midam: The Journey of a Kid from Brussels at the Belgian Comic Strip Center, daily visual presentations for all ages at the Planetarium and a TikTok challenge at Art et Marges. The whole family is challenged, meanwhile, at the Kanal Centre’s Slam Battle of the Generations, while the Africa Museum in Tervuren offers special activity books and a virtual reality experience.
The 1010 project challenges 10 local photographers to define a place in 10 photographs. For the third edition, the Ardennes is the place. See how different Belgium’s wildest region looks depending on who’s aiming the lens. Until 13 March L’Enfant Sauvage, Rue de l’Enseignement 23
Ever been to the Sewer Museum? Now there is a new audio tour that puts you in the shoes of a new recruit in the sanitation biz, who must face challenges, solve puzzles and hear all the anecdotes inherent in such a historical and, erm, unusual environment.
Escale du Nord presents the 13th edition of Devoir de Mémoire. Every year, Anderlecht’s culture centre delves into a fascinating part of Belgium’s past. This year L’esclavage d’hier et d’aujourd’hui examines the slave trade, a phenomenon that has caused profound demographic, political and economic upheavals in the history of humankind. Until 28 February, Rue du Chapelain 1 (Anderlecht)
Brussels Philharmonic is livestreamed direct from Bruges’s Concertgebouw, performing Debussy’s La mer against the backdrop of dance films by Thierry De Mey. The Belgian musician and filmmaker was inspired by Debussy to create Prélude a la mer, a series of short films featuring dancers and the sea. 13 February 20.00
Place Pogge in Schaerbeek is named after a folk figure from the 19th century, but the exhibition Pogge et ses visages exhibition pictures the neighbourhood’s families of today. See who’s living behind the doors of this lively, multi-cultural district. Until 17 March, Schaerbeek Cultural Centre, Rue de Locht 91
A brilliant idea from KVS theatre: A podcast re-enacting some of the dramatic statements made during the court hearings involving Belgian police and the death of the two-year-old transmigrant Mawda Shawri. A verdict on the charge of involuntary manslaughter against the officer who fired the shot is expected on 12 February. The podcast, titled The Defendant No One Heard, comes in French and Dutch versions.
OUTSIDE BRUSSELS
Belgian artist Peter Morrens spent six weeks creating an entirely new parcours in the Warande culture centre for his exhibition Minstens 1 1/2 uur, en Terug (At Least One-and-a-Half hours, and Back). Visitors will see drawings, sculpture, paintings, historical objects, video and more by Morrens and no less than 42 fellow artists. Until 25 April, Warandestraat 42, Turnhout
Photos, from top: ©Folimage, ©Simon Vansteenwinckel/L’Enfant Sauvage, ©Thierry De Mey/Concertgebouw, ©Wikipedia