Shine a Light Award

To support the creative industry during a challenging 2020, the IMZ called upon their Members to nominate any actions + initiatives by other members or non-members which connected people through the arts in times of Covid-19. From numerous nominees, the IMZ Directorate voted on the winner.

While a great amount of actions and initiatives connected people through the arts during the pandemic one exceptionally stood out: The Salzburger Festspiele. The festival, presenting 110 performances in 30 days, was now awarded with the Shine a Light Award, a non-endowed honorary prize newly created by the IMZ.

Arild Erikstad, IMZ President: “With the IMZ, we fuel the industry with valuable contacts and fruitful business opportunities. But we don’t live by bread alone: Music and dance are food for our hearts and souls. The Salzburg Festival has satisfied our hunger and setting an example for the whole trade.”  

Katharina Jeschke, IMZ Secretary General: “The IMZ honours the Salzburg Festival for their mindful and paradigmatic decision to realise the festival at the right time and in the right place. Last summer, their actions have sparked inspiration and hope for the whole industry. I congratulate the Salzburg Festival for acting as an indispensable beacon during challenging times!”

“We are very happy about this award, which we dedicate to our staff, our artists, our health experts who advised us on the prevention concept, and our audience. They all have an indispensable share in the communal experience of the Festival. We are pleased that we reached almost 80,000 visitors on site and over 3.5 million Festival enthusiasts via television, radio and our extensive streaming programme. We have shown that cultural events in times of pandemic are not only possible, but necessary. With this in mind, we are already looking forward to the Salzburg Festival in 2021,” says Lukas Crepaz, Executive Director of the Salzburg Festival.
 
The IMZ Shine a Light Award was awarded online during Avant Première Music + Media Market, the international trade fair for performing arts in audiovisual media on 18 February. Lukas Crepaz, Executive Director of the Salzburg Festival, accepted the award in a video conference taking place during the IMZ Member Session at Avant Première.

A special mention went out to the production “Covid Fan Tutte” produced by the Finnish National Opera and distributed by Yle, the Finnish Broadcasting Company.