From January 2025, the Bpi will be moving ‘outside the walls’!
During its move, and for the duration of its relocation, the Bpi will be deploying part of its activities outside the walls of the Centre Pompidou. Find out more about our new partner venues and the events they will be hosting from January 2025.
Although the Bpi at the Centre Pompidou will only close its doors on the evening of March 2, 2025, until its reopening in the Lumière building (12th arrondissement) in August 2025, off-site activities will begin in January 2025 in partner venues around Paris.
La cinémathèque du documentaire à la Bpi will be the first to take off (not so) far from the movie theaters of the Centre Pompidou: from January 8, 2025, chapter 2 of the cycle “Frederick Wiseman, nos humanités” will be scheduled at the Forum des images, in the Forum des Halles (75001). A venue for screenings, events and cultural activities, the Forum des images comprises 3 cinemas with 100, 300 and 500 seats, adapted for people with reduced mobility and equipped for all film formats. The Cinémathèque du documentaire will be programming its cycle screenings there, as well as its regular evening events. Daytime screenings, including the free Yeux doc à midi on Fridays, will be held at the Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles (see below).
Another venue, or rather partner venueS, is the Bibliothèques de la Ville de Paris, a network of some 75 libraries. Several projects will be shared from 2025, starting with the Nuits de la lecture 2025 (January 23-26, 2025), during which the Bpi will hold workshops at the Forney library (4th). This evening launches the multi-year partnership with the City of Paris libraries in collaboration with Bibliocité.
For literature, head for the Gaîté Lyrique (75003). Feminism and gender, the environment, current affairs, technology & society… There are many “thematic bridges” between the cultural programs of the Gaîté Lyrique and those of the Bpi! In the heart of Paris, the spaces of this former Parisian temple of operetta will host a Bpi conference every last Wednesday of the month.
However, due to the occupation of the premises by a group of young people without accommodation, the “Faits divers, fait littéraire?” meeting in the “Les rendez-vous d’Effractions” series with writer Philippe Jaenada scheduled for January 29 has had to be rescheduled to the Bpi (Atelier 1, level 2).
As for the Effractions festival of contemporary literature, scheduled to take place there from February 12 to 16, it has also been reprogrammed in other Parisian cultural venues: Center Wallonie-Bruxelles, Centre Pompidou, médiathèque Françoise-Sagan…
Another key venue during the Bpi’s relocation is the Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles Paris, which promotes cultural creation from the Wallonia-Brussels Federation. Located just across the street from the Centre Pompidou, the CWB is a long-standing partner of the Bpi (cycle and performances during the Printemps de la poésie, cycles built in collaboration, partnership during the Effractions festival…). In view of its cultural program, and the proximity of its themes and issues to those of the meetings offered by the Bpi, the CWB is naturally an effective relay for the library’s “Parole” program, and will also host daytime film screenings, notably the free Friday screenings Les yeux doc à midi) from January 10 with the screening of Robert Kramer’s Route one/USA (Part 1), a classic documentary road-movie, as part of the “Voyage, voyages” program.
As for the 47th Cinéma du réel festival, it will take place from March 22 to 29, 2025 in several left bank cinemas: L’Arlequin, the Reflet Médicis, the Saint-André-des-Arts and the Christine Cinéma Club, with an essentially contemporary program, structured so that films respond to each other, complement each other and join hands! Professional events (grouped under the name ParisDOC) will take place at the Théâtre de l’Alliance française.
To bridge the gap between the closure and the reopening of the Bpi at the end of August 2025, several locations near the Lumière will host workshops and events from March to August 2025:
- Cité des métiers
This venue is already a regular partner of the Bpi for the organization of Emploi et vie professionnelle workshops.
→ Ressources documentaires pour l’emploi et la vie professionnelle workshop • 10am-12pm
Thursdays March 20 | May 22 2025 - Université Ouverte
This Université Paris-Cité organization offers courses, lectures and activities open to everyone, regardless of age or qualifications.
→ Déclics informatiques mediation • every Wednesday from 3 to 5 pm
→ Initiation et découverte de la culture numérique workshop • every Thursday from 11am to 12:30pm
March to June 2025 - Centre Paris Anim’ Bessie Smith
This is one of 50 Paris Anim’ centers offering a wide range of activities (sports, performing arts, crafts, music, multimedia, etc.) for children, teenagers and adults.
→ Bons plans à Paris workshop • 15h30-17h • Art room
Thursdays March 20 | April 17 | May 15 | June 19 | July 17 - Coffee shop Kawaa at the Lumière
Right next to the entrance to the future Bpi, a convivial coffee shop to host workshops.
→ conversation workshops in english and spanish
From March 3 to July 2025.
→ English conversation workshops – Every Thursday – 5.30pm and 6.30pm
→ Spanish conversation workshops – Every Thursday – 7pm
→ Italian conversation workshops – 1st and 3rd Monday of each month – 4pm - Ground Control
For workshops in French as a foreign language, head for Ground Control, a multidisciplinary, independent venue that occupies a special place in the Parisian landscape.
Every Wednesday
The Forum des images
Located in the heart of Paris, the Forum des images is a place for programming, reflection, education and mediation. The audiovisual memory of Paris since its creation in 1988, it explores all forms of cinema and is committed to image education. A space for encounters and exchanges, the Forum des images has distinguished itself since 2018 through its diversified programming, offering year-round sessions based on the 4 arts of cinema, comics, video games and new images. This cultural offering is explored through thematic cycles, festivals and encounters with creators and artists from all over the world.
The Gaîté Lyrique
The Gaîté Lyrique, a cultural venue owned by the City of Paris, intends to respond to the cultural, social, democratic and climatic emergency. With the Fabrique de l’époque project, between creation and commitment, it invites everyone to move from idea to action, gathered around a concert, a round table, a drink, a performance, a workshop or a screening. The Gaîté Lyrique is open every day to support a new generation of talent, breaking down barriers between practices and audiences, and building new narratives on a European scale. Hand in hand with artists, activists, thinkers and change agents, the Gaîté Lyrique – Fabrique de l’époque proposes new ways of creating and acting together.
The Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles Paris
The Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles is an arts center and catalyst for contemporary Belgian creation – a space of junctions and intersections founded in 1979. The center is a decentralized service of the public administration Wallonie-Bruxelles International (WBI), of which it is one of two centers abroad. Through its transdisciplinary programming, the CWB is mandated to disseminate and promote the work of artists based in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation. It thus promotes emerging and established talent. It contributes to stimulating international synergies and crystallizing attention in favor of the so-called Belgian scene, and promotes contemporary creation in its transversality and highlights the creative ecosystem of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation.
Publié le 16/01/2025 - CC BY-SA 4.0
