Zahraničí: Following the success of the...

Zahraničí: Following the success of the 2nd international literature festival berlin (ilb) in 2002, the festival will take place again this year from the 10th to the 21th September. For twelve days, a wide audience will encounter contemporary trends in international prose and poetry. With an expected 120 authors from around the world, the festival will contribute to the openmindedness and hospitality of Berlin. In 2003, the ilb will once again transform Berlin into a locus for poetry and literary discourse. The international literature festival berlin regards itself as a literary interface on two levels. On the one hand, the festival presents the latest developments in literature from all corners of the world. On the other hand, the ilb aims to provide a medium for personal meetings between guests and authors resident in Berlin. In order to create the framework for enriching individual contact between resident and invited artists, Berlin authors take care of foreign authors for the duration of the festival. The success of the hospitality programme is vouched for by the numerous resulting personal friendships and artistic exchanges between national and international authors, many of which outlasted the initial ‘pairings’ in 2001 and 2002. That Berlin is the city that plays host to this large-scale literary experiment comes as no surprise. During the last century Berlin has developed into the German city of literature. Berlin has always attracted authors, and even today there are many exiled and foreign authors living here. But no small part is played by the Berlin public, consisting of avid readers who contribute in a decisive way to a situation in which it is impossible to imagine Berlin’s cultural life without international literature. It is not rare to find between 30 and 40 literary events taking place in one evening. The international literature festival berlin could not have been conceived and would not be possible without the existence of such a deep-rooted literary network. The festival is bound to the “Spirit of Sarajevo” evoked in the “Diary of Emigration” by the Bosnian author Dzevad Karahasan, who described the besieged town as, “a place in which the various countenances of the earth converge on one point, like diffused rays of light in a prism.” In the age of globalisation the challenge will be to maintain the autonomy of expression in different cultures while shaping communication between them in a creative and innovative way. Thus the festival also aims to devote special attention to those regions where this creative exchange is threatened or hindered, and to provide evidence that people from different languages, cultures, and religions, with different backgrounds and traditions can live together and communicate in a peaceful and cooperative way. Festival Programme An extensive and varied cross-section of contemporary world-literature will be presented in the three main programme sections as well as in the supporting programme during the festival. I n the most comprehensive section, ‘Literature of the World’, the authors are chosen by jurors. Since Jurors are expected to not only take into regard the bestsellers of the national and international book market, it is no coincidence that every year some of the invited authors are world famous, while others are famous in their home country but relatively unknown in Germany, and still others are an insider’s tip. In comparison to the big literature festivals in Toronto, London, Medellin, Jerusalem, Rotterdam and Durban, the calling of a jury with members from all over the world is a novelty. Trustees, jurors and authors who have been invited directly by the festival appear in the programme section, ‘Kaleidoscope’. This responds to current cultural and political developments and noteworthy new developments. For the second time in the ilb programme, there will also be an emphasis on one country. In 2003 the emphasis will be on Greece. Readings and discusssions with Greek authors as well as literary films and music from Greece are planned. In co-operation with the Griechische Kulturstiftung (Greek Cultural Foundation), twelve Greek authors will read from their works. The third main section is ‘International Children’s and Juvenile Literature’, which aims to encourage access to books for children and young people, and thereby promote their reading competence while developing their critical and creative skills. The category ‘Recollections’ offers the opportunity for the public to discover (or rediscover) familiar and unfamiliar literary classics. A particular aim of this section is to highlight, through the cultural medium, some of the Biblical and older works of D. E. Sattler. The programme category ‘Reflections’ is designed to provide a unique forum for political and cultural discussion. The central theme of this programme category, which includes lectures, live talks/discussions, and a one-day symposium entitled ‘Drifting Continents’, centres on current changes in the world political situation as a result of the Iraq war. Rather than concentrating on the dominant question of European-American relations, however, the focus will be directed towards the perspective of other parts of the world. At the same time, the debate will be flanked by historical reflections which can be considered in a new light within the context of recent developments. n addition to the rich and comprehensive main programme (including symposiums, creative writing workshops, lectures/recitals, concerts etc), the literary programme of the third international literature festival berlin 2003 will also be accompanied by a series of literary films. Films deriving from literary works, as well as films in which the author has played a decisive role, will be screened in the Berliner Filmkunsthaus Babylon in Rosa-Luxemburg- Platz.