Conversations with Resistance Cinema

Today we’d like to introduce you to Resistance Cinema.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
In 2024, two educators in Atlanta decided to launch a new radical education project outside of the academy, using cinema as the primary tool. After attending an art show at the Little Five Points Community Center, these educators proposed partnering with WRFG, the community radio station housed in the building, and the organization loved the idea. Along the way, three other people have joined what is now a collective of five. The first screening was held in June, and it was of the iconic decolonial masterpiece The Battle of Algiers (1966). After the screening, which was well-attended, the group facilitated a discussion about the film’s main themes and how they are useful to us here and now, in Atlanta, Georgia. That first event set the template for what would become regular screenings, usually twice a month, of films concerning everything from Black liberation struggles to labor struggles to Palestine and Cuba and the Congo and well beyond. To date, we have shown more than three dozen films and have partnered with a dozen local and national organizations. The list grows by the month. In March, we collaborated with Bollywood filmmaker, Shazia Iqbal and screenwriter Rahul Badwelkar to bring their important film “Dhadak 2” on caste discrimination to Atlanta. Our goal is simple: foster anti-imperialist consciousness and create a global solidarity network through cinema.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The reception has surpassed our expectations by a mile. However, there have been occassional challenges, like any organization will face. At times, attendance has been low, usually when the topic is obscure or it conflicts with other events in the city. Burnout is always a danger but we try to take breaks. Tech issues crop up once in a while. But even with these minor issues, the experience has been overhwhelmingly positive, by every metric. We are grateful to the Atlanta and larger Georgia community for all their love and support.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Resistance Cinema is inspired by Third Cinema movement and global anti-imperialist struggles. Although we have not created any films, we see distribution of films just as important. That said, the Atlanta Center of Photography invited Resistance Cinema to create an installation as part of the summer bookshelf residency in 2025. For this project, we created a video montage with clips from various films we have screened and played it on a loop on a small TV. We also printed large stills from various films and mounted them to the wall with captions beneath each of them.

We specialize in free screening of films for mass education and organizing events that can connect our community on common topics of decolonization and such. Since founding our project we have discovered that there are other microcinemas in the Atlanta metro area, but what sets us apart is our focus on the history of imperialism and resistance to it, two topics that are often overlooked and rarely understood. By focusing on this work, we are bringing a much-needed anti-imperialist consciousness to an audience that is comprised of all walks of life. We are beyond proud to have contributed to their political education, and in doing so are enhancing our own.

How do you define success?
First of all, ours is a non-commercial project. So, success has nothing to do with financial gain. A successful screening for us is one with an engaged audience that is clearly inspired to take some form of action after they leave the event, whether that be join an organization, read up on the topic, or come to more screenings and help form a larger community.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/resistancecinema
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/resistancecinemaatl/