Quo vadis ars?

The situation in the cultural sector has been described and discussed in numerous interviews, corona diaries, comments and reports in the past few weeks. Our annotated collection of currently 193 sources gathers voices from different sectors and media. This creates a picture of the cultural landscape in crisis, whose temporal transformation can be explored interactively via a dedicated tag cloud.


 

Deutsche Filmbranche sucht Auswege aus der Corona-Krise . Filmkunstmesse in Leipzig
German film industry seeks ways out of the Corona crisis . Film art fair in Leipzig

by Ole Steffen (17 Sep 2020)
Original source: mdr Kultur

The film art fair takes place in Leipzig. The event was the first industry meeting in Germany since the beginning of the Corona crisis and thus also served to reflect on the current situation.
As an introduction to a panel discussion at the Alte Handelsbörse in Leipzig, the Minister of State for Culture, Monika Grütters, had the opportunity to make a statement on cultural funding during the Corona crisis. This was followed by a panel discussion with, among others, Carlo Chatrian, festival director of Berlin, and Michael Kölmel, managing director of Weltkino distribution. The latter assessed the film industry's funding awards - for producers, distributors and cinemas - as fundamentally positive, but complained that film distributors only receive funding for German films. Since the film business is now international, this hardly helps at all. Monika Grütters pointed out that the extra billion for culture is financed by taxpayers' money, which is why it is necessary to look very closely at how the funding is distributed.

International films played an important role in the discussion, because blockbusters from America usually attract visitors to the cinemas. At present, US films are being held back by German distributors, which is why many cinema owners complain that they are not only restricted by hygiene rules, but that the reduced number of films on offer also attracts hardly any visitors to the cinemas. Carlo Chatrian, festival director of the Berlinale, pointed out that defocusing American productions could also be an advantage. He also sees therein an opportunity to stimulate a new reflection on the quality of films and a European film culture.

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tag Filmindustrie Filmverleiher Filmkunstmesse Blockbuster Leipzig Monika Grütters Carlo Chatrian
Performing Arts/ Cinema Bericht

»Die Leute haben eine Sehnsucht in die Theater zurückzukehren« . Kultur in Bayern
»People have a longing to return to the theater« . culture in Bavaria

by Sara Maria Behbehani (13 Sep 2020)
Original source: Süddeutsche Zeitung

At the beginning of the new season, Sara Maria Behbehani explores at theaters in Bavaria how theater professionals are facing the opening of their houses and how the corona rules are perceived in everyday life. The joy of regaining contact with the audience and the intensive work on corona-compliant themes is common to all the theaters.
The Theater an der Rott has already hosted successful open-air events in the summer. For the indoor events, the program was completely rewritten once again - not only to implement the corona rules and incorporate them conceptually into the plays, but also to do justice to the loss of income.
At the Landestheater Niederbayern, the journalist talks to the freelance director Sarah Kohrs. She is happy that she has a new engagement and tries to bring her new play on stage as corona-conform as possible.
The lockdown at the Junge Theater Regensburg was extremely productive. Maria-Elena Hackbarth and her team tried to keep in touch with the young audience with various offers. Also the implementation of the distance rules is not considered problematic here. Family islands offer a personal atmosphere, which at the same time offers protection from infection. The lockdown will probably also play a role thematically, since the theater is starting the new season with Kafka's "Metamorphosis".
At Ingolstadt City Theater, Andrea Frohn is not allowed to open the season with a cabaret evening as planned. Since she is pregnant, she is not allowed to perform. Nevertheless, Frohn is looking forward to the new season, as the audience is incredibly grateful that it is now starting again.

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tag Theater Bayern Spielzeitauftakt Hygieneregeln Kabarett
Performing Arts/ Cinema Bericht

Coronaregeln in Theatern . Gute Chancen für weitere Lockerungen
Corona regulations in theatres . good chances for further easing

by Ulrich Khuon, Vladimir Balzer (07 Sep 2020)
Original source: Deutschlandfunk Kultur

The theaters, operas and concert halls are the safest public spaces. Ulrich Khuon, director of the Deutsches Theater in Berlin and president of the German Stage Association (Deutscher Bühnenverein), is convinced that infections in theaters are largely ruled out. The ventilation systems in most theaters are excellent, and strict attention is paid to the observance of hygiene rules by the audience and staff. Even in the event of an infection, the tracking of people is no problem, unlike in the bus and train. And so Ulrich Khuon pleads - also in view of the successful Salzburg Festival - for further relaxation in the event area, which should be as uniform as possible for all federal states: one meter distance is justifiable based on current experience. The confidence of the visitors has also grown in recent weeks to such an extent that the innovations have been accepted.
Khuon sees a danger in the tendency of many houses to start the season with short plays. Quickly edible formats that do not cause any problems should not dominate the program. One could also reconsider breaks at the moment.
Khuon critically refers to a current statement by Bavarian Prime Minister Söder, who has drafted a clear hierarchy of easing: First comes economic life, then schools and daycare centers. If things run smoothly and without contagion here again, one could also take care of sports and culture. The fact that even after half a year, one of the most important figures in crisis management has still not come to the conclusion that culture is an important economic factor in Germany outrages the chairman of the German Stage Association.

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tag Theater Abstandsregeln Schachbrettmuster Salzburger Festspiele Deutscher Bühnenverein
All sections Interview

Kinos in Not . Betreiber fordern finanzielle Hilfen – und blicken neidisch nach Bayern
Cinemas in need . operators demand financial aid - and look enviously to Bavaria

by Tim Spark (05 Sep 2020)
Original source: Handelsblatt

The film industry is suffering from the Corona crisis. Above all, German cinema operators do not see how they can maintain their program offerings in the long term. Michael Pawlowski, co-partner of the Filmpalast Group, reports a 50 percent drop in visitors in North Rhine-Westphalia. In federal states with stricter visitor regulations - in NRW only one seat has to be vacated - the decline is even more serious. This means that cinema operations are currently being run from reserves, as the revenues are not sufficient to cover them.
This is the situation that 68 med ium-sized, family-run movie theaters have to address in an open letter to Monika Grütters. The cinema operators need financial support and a relaxation of the hygiene rules. Since the movie theaters are well ventilated and the visitors do not speak during the screening, the risk of infection is lower in the cinema than in the office, according to a study by the Hermann Rietschel Institute of the Technical University of Berlin.
But it is not only the rules of distance that make life difficult for cinema operators. Film distributors are currently holding back on film releases because the number of visitors is currently not very attractive.
Although the German Minister of State for Culture has already released funds to support cinemas, these funds are tied to conversion, modernization and equipment measures and are therefore not helping to save the cinemas in the current liquidity squeeze.
In Bavaria, there is currently an aid program in place that compensates cinema operators for every visitor they have less than last year. In the other federal states, this model is seen as an opportunity to at least cover the fixed costs of the cinemas and prevent a cinema from dying out.

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tag Kinobetreiber Filmwirtschaft Neustart Kultur Filmproduktion Monika Grütters Hygieneregeln
Performing Arts/ Cinema Bericht

»Auch Kunst ist systemrelevant« . Kultur in der Corona-Krise
»Art is also a systemically relevant« . Culture during Corona crisis

by Katharina von Tschurtschenthaler (13 Aug 2020)
Original source: tagesschau

Since 6 weeks the Hamburg Tivoli-Theater at the Reeperbahn is playing again. However, a lot of things are different than in pre-Corona times. Every house has to present its own hygiene concept and needs to have it approved. At the Tivoli, currently only 250 instead of 630 tickets per performance can be sold. But in contrast to the successful Hamburg musicals, which are still unable to perform, at least the operation is secured here. Support from Hamburg's cultural authority makes it possible for the Tivoli to make ends meet despite the lack of income. Nevertheless, t heatre boss Corny Littmann is disappointed that the importance of culture in Corona times has not really been discussed. The focus was on Lufthansa and daycare centres.
The team is happy to be able to perform again. Singers are doing admission controls or take over the moderation of the evening. After four months without engagement every job is accepted. But what is still missing is interaction with the audience. They are happy that they can attend cultural events again.

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tag Tivoli-Theater Hygieneregeln Bilanz Kulturförderung Hamburg Musical
Performing Arts/ Cinema Bericht

DOV: In der Klassik fallen viele durch alle Förderraster . Corona-Hilfen für die Musik
DOV: In classical music, many fall through all the funding cracks . Corona aids for music

by Gerald Mertens, Jörg Biesler (02 Aug 2020)
Original source: Deutschlandfunk

Funding conditions for the music sector were extended by the federal government. Living costs can now also be taken into account. Nevertheless, the support is far from sufficient to compensate for the billions lost in the industry - especially since all employment routes for musicians have been cut off at the same time.
Gerald Mertens, Managing Director of the German Orchestra Association (DOV), describes the current situation of artists and orchestras in an interview. He predicts that many musicians will look for other jobs because they cannot cover 12 months of loss of income from reserves. He formulates the demand that the federal and state governments must give more support to classical music, which is currently falling through all the cracks.

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tag klassische Musik Orchester Berufsverbot Initiative Musik Umsatzeinbruch Kulturförderung
Music Interview

Vorhang auf! . Spielstart: Anti-Corona-Konzepte deutscher Theater
Open the Curtain! . Start of Season: Anti-Corona concepts of German Theatres

by Verena Greb, Nadine Wojcik (19 Jul 2020)
Original source: Deutsche Welle

Dismantled seats, Plexiglas panes, hand disinfection, separate entrances and exits: The operation at the theaters is to start again, but this requires hygiene concepts to protect the audience from being infected by droplets. Each theatre is currently developing its own concepts. What they all have in common is that a maximum of a quarter of the previous tickets can be offered.
Special tests were carried out in Augsburg and Berlin. With the help of machines and fans, hydrogen peroxide is nebulized over large areas in the halls. The Berliner Ensemble reports that th e naturally degradable disinfectant can kill 99 percent of viruses and bacteria. In the future, the technology will therefore not only be used for the halls, but also for toilets and entrance areas.
Meanwhile, a theater course has been developed at the Munich Residenztheater. The visitors are guided in groups of four through different stations in the building where the individual scenes are performed. However, it is problematic that not only the audience has to be kept at a distance, but also the actors must not get too close to each other.
Therefore, the schedules for the new season have been revised in all buildings, and extremely physical productions have been cancelled, as have those with many different roles.
Even though the theaters are slowly awakening from their state of shock, fundamental doubts remain about cultural policy: Why do the theaters have different regulations than German aviation? What significance does culture have? The survival of the large theaters is ensured by Corona cultural aid. If this is not sufficient, the federal states will help out in the long term. For the small theaters, which cannot keep buoy up with their limited number of seats, things do not look so rosy. They now have to decide whether to extend the Corona break. The curtain may have fallen here forever.

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tag Spielzeit Theater Hygieneregeln Wasserstoffperoxid Freie Szene Kulturförderung
Performing Arts/ Cinema Bericht

Die Maske ist hinnehmbar . Dreharbeiten in der Pandemie
The mask is tolerable . Filming during the pandemic

by Jörg Seewald (16 Jul 2020)
Original source: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

The corona requirements confront the film industry with great challenges, but also lead to more concentrated work. The actors are grateful that they are allowed to work again - even if the rehearsals with masks are a challenge. A point of contention regarding payment is currently the quarantine days before shooting, which are rarely paid for the actors. A lot has changed on the film set itself. The most important man is now the hygiene officer. He is familiar with the applicable rules, advises on the implementation of the script and decides who is to be tested and which measures are appropriate. As the assessments of the situation change weekly, this task requires flexibility and tact, as the hygiene requirements also result in high costs. In the case of cinema films, these can amount to up to 150,000 euros.

There is currently still a rescue fund available for the cancellation or abandonment of shooting, which is to be replaced by the Federal Government's  »Neustart Kultur« [Restart Culture] programme. However, this only provides support for cinema film productions and high-quality series productions. Accordingly, broadcasters and production companies must bear the risks for TV productions themselves.

 

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tag Film Dreharbeiten Hygieneregeln Quarantäne-Tage ARD Neustart Kultur Ausfallfonds
Performing Arts/ Cinema Bericht

Sibler und Söder bremsen die Kultur aus . Kunst in Bayern
Sibler and Söder slow down the culture . Art in Bavaria

by Friedrich-Karl Bruhns, Vera Deininger, Axel Schertel (07 Jul 2020)
Original source: Süddeutsche Zeitung

In letters to the editor, the Süddeutsche Zeitung creates space for its readers to react to the cultural policy in Corona times in Bavaria. They react to articles by Egbert Tholl and an interview with the State Opera Director Nikolaus Bachler. The results are devastating. Vera Deininger calls on the newspaper to fight courageously for culture in the face of the failure of political decision-makers. Dr. Axel Schertel expresses the same impression with regard to Austria and Switzerland, where cultural events with up to 1000 visitors are to be permitted again from Sept ember. In addition to the extreme restrictions for orchestras, Friedrich-Karl Bruhns criticises the government's self-praise with regard to "aid for solo self-employed persons". Contrary to the official announcements, these aids do not reach many artists for various reasons - unrealistic requirements or missing application forms. Bruhns sees the fact that in return the business lobby was able to negotiate completely different regulations for air traffic as proof that the art and culture sector as well as the threat to the existence of artists and organizers is not taken seriously. The trade-off between necessary caution and possible opening should apply to everyone.

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tag Egbert Tholl Markus Söder Bernd Sibler Münchner Philharmoniker Soforthilfe Hygieneregeln
All sections Leserbriefe

Entwarnung klingt anders . Chorsingen und Corona: Studie macht Aerosole sichtbar
It doesn't sound like the all-clear . Choral singing and corona: Study makes aerosols visible

by Tobias Stosiek (03 Jul 2020)
Original source: BR Klassik

At the beginning of the Corona pandemic there were some cases of mass infection in choirs and so it is reasonable to assume that the risk of infection is particularly high when singing. In a study conducted by the LMU Munich and the Friedrich-Alexander-University in Erlangen, the voice physician Matthias Echternach and the fluid mechanic Stefan Kniesburges conducted a series of experiments to make the spread of aerosols visible. Singers of the Bavarian Radio Choir were available as test persons. They had the hope that the study would send a positive signal for an early resumption of concert activities.

The all-clear hoped for by the study did not come true, the hygiene rules that have been in force up to now are quite sensible, since aerosols do not only spread forward but also sideways. The degree of propagation depends on the existing ventilation system. A whole series of questions still remain unanswered: Does deep breathing while singing contribute to an increased probability of infection? How large is the amount of aerosol that is formed when singing and what is the corresponding concentration of aerosols in the air? Questions that still need to be answered in order to further trace the dangers of choral singing.

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tag Chorsingen Aerosole Spucketröpfchen Hygieneregeln BR-Chor Matthias Echternach Stefan Kniesburges
Music Bericht

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The Team

Facing arts is a projet by STORM.

STORM is an acronym playing with the initials by Miriam Seidler & Tim Otto Roth, who are hit both by the Corona crisis. Dr. Miriam Seidler is a scholar in German literature and currently works as specialist in public relations. Dr. Tim Otto Roth is a scholar in art and science history and works as a conceptual artist and composer. He is known for his huge projects in public space, cooperations with leading scientific institutions and his immersive sound and light installations. Miriam and Tim collaborate regularly for years. With facing arts they reaslize their first common art project.
You find more informatin on both initiators on www.miriamseidler.de and www.imachination.net.

Special thanks to Paco Croket for the tag cloud programming!

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