FESTIVAL OF FILM AND URBANISM

MAY 9 - MAY 13 / 2018, SLAVUTYCH

Official statement of METASITU regarding the Urban Residency at 86 IFFU

 

We want to produce a post-national world, where people question their relationship to territories, and channel that identity into relationships with each other, towards shared values. We understand that this is a wish of privilege, for the world, as a space, is heavily regulated: unfortunately borders, and passports still determine who gets in, and who does not.

 

Cities are not countries. Nation states are about who is in and who is out, they determine a national language, a national myth, a national zeitgeist. Cities, on the other hand, are polyglots, adhere by different myths, they live in a myriad of ‘nows’. Cities are nodes where people come together. This was perfectly present in the design of Slavutych that brought different urbanists together. This unique heritage and legacy is something that we want to honor, understanding the complex nature of it, particularly in the current geo-political context.

 

The residency participants will be selected by the Jury members mentioned in the Open Call based on the merits, engagement to the territory, and ideas expressed by the applicants. The residency covers transportation, accommodation, production and per diems to cover their expenses while in Slavutych.

 

This is an opportunity to build bridges between urban practitioners from cities who have different histories and contexts, not to honor the imperialistic agendas of politicians. It is these urban practitioners that can later establish bottom-up change and propose a different vision for our everyday landscapes.

 

We are not necessarily seeking ‘Russian’ representatives, but people from/resident in/ familiar with Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Belgorod. These cities are inhabited by people from different nationalities, different passports, backgrounds, different political affiliations, and biographies. We are not looking at passports here (except in the case of Polish, Czech, Hungarian and Slovakian participants, which has to do with strict funding requirements), but rather for familiarity with urban contexts. We are not seeking for anyone to ‘represent’ any state, but rather the ability to come together and establish a new discussion about urbanism, honoring the unique past of Slavutych.

 

The people we are aiming to attract with this call are creators – individuals with the ability to imagine better futures, unforseen urban fates. In our opinion, this is the most important feature of a citizen of today: because only when we can conceive a different future we can make it possible to work towards it. A new world of new possibilities, rather than one of stagnant positions. Where people are treated for what they do, not what they represent.

 

We are not establishing formal relations with a State, but with individuals. We understand that at times of conflict it is often difficult to distinguish between the two, but it is necessary. And we find that culture has a tremendous potential for opening up these lines of dialogue. They are important.

 

This conversation is important. Let’s continue. Let’s imagine another future together.

 

Let’s.

 

– METASITU