• Directors Lounge an introduction

• prologue

Directors Lounge started in 2005 as an experiment, a relaxed space for filmmakers, videoartists and everybody interested in experimental forms of cinema and videoart, during The Berlin International Film Festival. Directors Lounge functioned as a hideaway, a meeting point and also as a starting point for new creative collaborations.
At a time when Berlin is addicted to cinema Directors Lounge presented rare, experimental or simply unknown works which often don’t fit into any category. Video installations and Live-events that go beyond the boundries of the screen expanded the program literally.
The overwhelming response by both, the public and the artists encouraged us to continue Directors Lounge not only as an annual event but as a continuous platform for film and media art.

• state of the art

Since our start in 2005 we had been invited by several institutions, art-events and cinematic venues to show special screenings and exhibitions. A year later the second Directors Lounge Berlin in February back up our concept of presenting moving images not in the black box of the cinema but in an environment that cultivates the dialogue. Consequently we are not bound to a specific location but rather focus on site-specific presentations. Thus, to exhibit video installations in the classical architecture of an 18th-century castle while screening short 16mm movies in an old Lounge from the twenties is no antagonism but part of our ongoing attempt to resuscitate a culture of the artistic circle in the 21 century.
The new launched Directors Lounge television is a first step to explore new ways to present video-art over the net. The fact that these opportunities are widely reduced by some Hollywood-majors to a debate about piracy underlines the necessity for an active engagement. in these developments. Several hundred visitors the day highlight the interest in experimental cinema and, at the same time, point out the need to redefine the role of art projects in the real world.
The focus shifts from the presentation of art to the introduction of the people behind.
An Evening with.. a row of personal shows in attendance of the particular artist is one result of such considerations.
Beside our continuous activity to arrange screenings and to curate exhibitions are we now, with an archive of more than 400 works and strong ties to several like-minded projects, also a valuable resource for curators of film festivals and art exhibitions

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• objectives

Directors Lounge has gained a lot of momentum within a very short time. A structure of clusters of different, independent curated projects allowed us to present a wide variety of short, experimental works from many different genres. We will continue to invite artists, curators, critics to specific discussions and lectures.
Special screenings feature highlights of experimental cinema, explore new trends in video-art and emphasize the role of independent filmmaking in culturspecific enviroments.
We showcase video installations, explore new ways of crossover in media-art and search for new forms of presentation beyond classic distribution-channels.
We will conceive art projects that act as an intervention into the public space. Projects that question the handling of the past, the construction of historiography, the attribution of identity, social and ethnic codes and their reflection in society right there where such a basic discussion should start: in the public. Public space is not a fixed space, it is everywhere, constantly in change, consequently we will be also be in motion, using different spaces for different works and different questions.
In addition to screenings, exhibitions, happenings – and as the name suggests – Directors Lounge will always be a meetingpoint, a place to have a chat and to lounge around with other friendly lizards. Thus making the name Directors Lounge more than just a fancy label.
We will continue to focus on events that endorse such a vivid dialogue.

• neeeds

We are proud to be an artist driven project and encouraged by the positive response on all levels. Directors Lounge would never been possible without the oustanding support from many friends that are working voluntary without any compensation. The more we evolve the more all involved reach their limits.
We hope to consolidate the unique position of Directors Lounge in the contemporary art and media world but we will depend on institutional and corporate patronage to do so.