What Public Service Media Commissioners Look for in Music and Arts Programming Today
16 February 2026, 16:30 – 17:15
Screening Hall 2
Opera has long embodied the Gesamtkunstwerk ideal — integrating music, drama, design, and performance. Yet in the 21st century, the art form risks lagging behind adjacent fields such as gaming, film, and XR, which are rapidly advancing immersive and interactive storytelling. This panel examines how opera can reassert its integrative potential by engaging with new technologies and cross-disciplinary practices. International leaders in composition, direction, and production will present case studies and discuss three key areas: Innovation and R&D – adoption of spatial audio, VR/AR, real-time interactivity, and hybrid stage–screen formats. Distribution and Audience Engagement – models for reaching global and diverse audiences beyond live performance and broadcast. Collaboration and Institutional Models – frameworks for sustaining large-scale interdisciplinary projects through partnerships and funding. Drawing on the panelists’ most recent work, the session will demonstrate how opera can adapt strategies from other art forms while leveraging its strengths in narrative depth and live performance. The panel discussion promises to offer practical insights into production, funding, and distribution of immersive music-driven works, as well as an understanding of the broader technological and cultural dynamics shaping the future of audiovisual storytelling.
Moderators
Cecilia Beacon
VP Content & Engagement, Marquee TV
Cecilia Beacon has over 20 years’ experience leading content and marketing teams for international brands, including six years at BBC Studios overseeing EMEA programming, marketing and global customer engagement. She previously held senior roles at National Geographic, Fox and FX, where she won awards for digital innovation.
Günter Atteln
Senior Producer, Accentus Music
Born in Speyer in 1971, Günter entered filmmaking through music, performing in orchestras and bands before working in a Mannheim recording studio. While studying musicology, psychology and economics, he began making short films. After an internship at EuroArts Music, he directed his first feature-length documentary *Sexo Puro – The Spanish Composer Maria de Alvear* for WDR, SWR and ARTE.
Speakers
Anja Stabell
Producer, NRK
Anja Stabell has built a career in television as a multi-camera director, specializing in both entertainment productions and classical music broadcasts. With 13 years of experience at Norway`s public broadcaster, NRK, Anja has gained considerable expertise in delivering diverse television content.
Martin Traxl
Head of Culture TV, ORF
Born in Villach, Austria, Martin Traxl studied journalism and dramatics and has worked for ORF since 1987. After roles as a journalist, arts presenter and news anchor, he held senior cultural leadership positions, including programme coordination for 3sat. Since 2007, he has headed the ORF Culture Department.
Matthias Kremin
Head of WDR Radio3 WDR Radio 5, Music TV
Matthias Kremin has held various roles at WDR, Westdeutscher Rundfunk, since 1990. After studying music, musicology and art history, he joined as a music editor for radio and television and later moved to the TV department as senior editor and executive producer. He became Head of Culture and Science Television in 2009 and, since 2019, has led the culture and information radio stations WDR3 and WDR5, also overseeing Music TV.
- IMZ
