Culture

Once a magnificent five-star lodge with restaurants and an Olympic pool, Mozambique's Grande Hotel—in all its gaudiness and self-importance—was the very emblem of Portuguese colonialism. Today, as architectural statement, it is in virtual ruin. What is left of the structure survives as a sort of commune for more than 3,000 Mozambiquans, who live in its wide corridors and commanding terraces without even water or electricity. Stoops' documentary presents a careful portrait of a grim and complex subject. (Lotte Stoops, 2010, HD-Cam, 67 minutes)

On November 10, 2011, Flanders House co-presented Grande Hotel by Flemish director, Lotte Stoops, at the Margaret Mead Film Festival at the American Museum of Natural History in Manhattan. To see some pictures of the exclusive opening click here.