The cycle celebrates its 20th anniversary with an annual, inclusive program for all audiences.
The cycle Cinema in Valencian language in Gandia commemorates its 20th anniversary in 2026 with a firm commitment to continuity, inclusion and the expansion of audiences. In this way, the initiative is consolidated with an annual program and reinforces its commitment to linguistic normalization and access to culture in Valencian.
For Josepa Costa, a technician at Service of Promotion and Linguistic Normalization of the Gandia Campus of the Universitat Politècnica de València, “the fact that the cycle has become an annual program has been a success”, since the field of leisure is one of the areas where Valencian has less presence. “It is not a question of will of the citizens, but of supply,” he said, stressing the importance of reaching especially the young population, key to the generational transmission and social use of the language.
Institutional Presentation
The UPV, through the Service of Promotion and Linguistic Normalization of the Gandia Campus participated in the presentation of the new edition of the cycle, promoted jointly by the Agència AVIVA de Promoció del Valencià of the City Council of Gandia, the University of Valencia (through UVgandia) and the Mancomunitat de Municipis de la Safor.
During the presentation, the representatives of the four entities agreed to highlight the value of two decades of collaborative work and stressed the importance of consolidating a project that promotes the standardized use of Valencian through cinema.
According to Esther Sapena, Councilor for Education, Language Policy and Children, “it is already 20 years of joint work of four entities that firmly believe in the need to offer cinema in Valencian in the city and the region”. She added that this anniversary allows “to strengthen and expand an essential project for linguistic normalization and access to culture in our language”.
Annual programming and better planning
The main novelty is that the series is now an annual event, which will improve both planning and dissemination. In addition, a biannual brochure has been prepared so that the public can find out in advance about the films, times and screening venues.
The sessions will take place one Thursday a month, at 7:00 p.m., in Room B of the Serrano Theater. Admission will be free until full capacity is reached.
Commitment to inclusion
On the other hand, the 2026 edition reinforces its inclusive character, in response to the commitment with the group of deaf people in the city and the region. From March, the screenings will have subtitles in Valencian. This measure guarantees equal access to culture and reinforces the standardized use of Valencian in all areas.
Program “Cinema en valencià a Gandia” from February to June
The first semester’s programming includes recent productions, from 2024 and 2025, and will include a special session on May 21 that will include a discussion with director Vicent Monsonís.
The programmed films are:
- February 12: Frontera
- March 26: Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice
- April 16: Mario
- May 21: La invasió dels bàrbars
- June 11: El camí de la sal
With this new stage, Cinema in Valencian language in Gandia reaffirms its role as a cultural reference in the Safor, bringing Valencian-language cinema to diverse audiences and consolidating a project that has been promoting language and culture from the local level for two decades.
Photo: Presentation of the event / Àlex Oltra