Film and media arts in North Rhine-Westphalia (Focal Point B: 69th International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and VIDEONALE.19)

From 24 to 29 April, eight international festival directors, curators and producers travelled to Oberhausen for the 69th International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and VIDEONALE.19.

The participants from Brazil, Georgia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Poland, Turkey, Ukraine and the USA visited the extensive festival programme of the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and met with festival director Dr. Lars Henrik Gass and Hilke Doering, head of the International Competition of the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen. In Oberhausen, the guests also had the opportunity to exchange ideas with filmmakers from NRW, e.g. with students and graduates of the Academy of Media Arts Cologne and participants of the NRW LAB (cooperation with the Filmwerkstatt Düsseldorf).

In Düsseldorf, the group visited the IMAI Foundation's Video Lounge at the NRW Forum Düsseldorf and met with Nele Kaczmarek, Deputy Director of the IMAI Foundation, and Darija Šimunović, Research Associate Collection & Distribution. The participants also visited the HMKV Hartware MedienKunstVerein in Dortmund.

The kick-off and central element of the combined themed tour "Film and Media Art in NRW" was a visit to the VIDEONALE.19 at the Kunstmuseum Bonn together with Tasja Langenbach, artistic director of the VIDEONALE, and a subsequent exchange with actors from the film and media art scene in NRW as well as the participants of the visitor programme "Film and Media Art in NRW. Focus A: 40th International Women's Film Festival Dortmund+Cologne and VIDEONALE.19" as part of a subsequent networking event on 25 April at the Kunstmuseum Bonn. Participants included: Jimena Aguilar (ifs - internationale filmschule köln), Prof Phil Collins (Academy of Media Arts Cologne), Tasja Langenbach (Videonale e. V., Bonn), Hanna Noh (artist / award winner, SHOOT - KHM & IFFF Dortmund+Cologne) and Julian Quentin (artist, VIDEONALE.19).