The University of Alicante's Permanent University in Villena Opens Enrollment for 'Cities of Film' Course

The University of Alicante's Permanent University in Villena has opened enrollment for the 'Cities of Film' course, a training proposal aimed at those who enjoy cinema, travel, and discovering new cities through cinematic works. The course will commence on January 12th.

With a duration of 40 teaching hours, the course will be held on Mondays and Wednesdays, from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM, under the direction of Geography Professor José Ramón Valero and Human Geography Professor Antonio Martínez Puche.

'Cities of Film' invites participants to observe and reflect on some of the world's great cities through their cinematic representation: from New York, Rome, or Paris to London, Berlin, Havana, and various Spanish locations such as Madrid, Barcelona, or Alicante sites that have been part of notable film shoots. Through excerpts from iconic films (and some less remembered), the course offers a renewed perspective on urban spaces whose cultural image has been shaped by the seventh art.

The director of the University Venue, Esther Perales, highlighted "the surprising city of Matera, in the Italian region of Basilicata, declared a World Heritage Site. A strange city? It certainly is. It seems to be built in reverse compared to others, but almost no visitor ever forgets it." Perales recalled that Matera, famous for its troglodyte structure, has been the setting for renowned films such as Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" or Francesco Rosi's "Christ Stopped at Eboli."

'Cities of Film' thus proposes a cultural and cinematic journey that combines history, urbanism, art, collective memory, and critical reflection on the visual construction of cities. An opportunity to understand how cinema transforms, reinterprets, and disseminates urban imaginaries that influence our way of conceiving and desiring the world's destinations.