Europe and European cinema at times of change

What is Europe? What is European? We use these words on a daily basis, but once we move beyond the assumedly clear geographical definitions or our little reflected commonplaces, the meaning of these concepts gets terribly fuzzy, politicized and contentious. The first decades of the 21st century have been characterised by a series of crises (from financial to security, migration, health, environmental, political, etc.), which only worsened this definitional conundrum: on the politically and socially destabilized and quickly changing continent the concept of Europe, the meaning of European values and identity are among the hottest debate points. In these fierce disputes, embittered by the seemingly endless series of crises, some call for a global human response (that is, to move beyond Europe), so as to address such global challenges as climate change, nuclear arms control or pandemics, while others wish to retreat into the nation or tribe, perceived as the last guard against the sea of troubles unleashed by global capitalism (that is, to move back from Europe).