In the run-up to the Atelier for Young Festival Managers in Poznan from 20-27 October 2014, all presenters who will participate in the Atelier to exchange with 40 young artistic festival directors from all over the world will be introduced. One of them is Annemie Vanackere; she will join the team of mentors of the Atelier for Young Festival Managers for the first time in Poznan.

“A theatre such as HAU Hebbel am Ufer offers you the opportunity to work closely with artists living in Berlin while at the same time creating an international programme,” said Annemie Vanackere in an interview for the Goethe-Institute V Magazine 2011.

Annemie Vanackere was born in Courtrai /Belgium, and studied philosophy and Theatre Studies at Leuven and Paris. Afterwards she worked as a production manager at the pioneering STUK centre for the arts, which presented the first productions of many Flemish artists but also, and especially, artists from many different countries, including Meg Stuart, Alain Platel, Needcompany and Forced Entertainment. For two years, she took over the Nieuwpoort Theatre in Ghent which had been founded by Dirk Pauwels; now known as Campo. In 1995 she moved to the Rotterdamse Schouwburg, where she set out as the programme director for the venue’s studio theatre and finally became the artistic director.

With director Jan Zoet, Vanackere successfully launched the Production house Rotterdam and the festival De Internationale Keuze. She worked in the Netherlands for 16 years and is an international expert on theatre and dance. Currently, she is the Artistic & Managing Director of the theatre and international performance centre HAU Hebbel am Ufer in Berlin.

Her experience in collaborating closely with local artists and creating an adventurous international programme are among the qualities she constantly brings to Berlin.

Seven renowned mentors from all over the world will guide the participants throughout the seven days of the Atelier POZNAN 2014 under the coordination of Hugo De Greef (Atelier Coordinator, former EFA Secretary General, Director European Capital of Culture Bruges 2002, Co-Founder Kaaitheater Brussels - Belgium): Robyn Archer (Artistic Director The Light in Winter Melbourne, Deputy Chair Australia Council for the Arts, Strategic Advisor Gold Coast Arts and Culture Queensland – Australia), Mark Ball (Artistic Director London International Festival of Theatre (LIFT) - UK), Bernard Faivre d’Arcier (President Lyon Biennial, former long-standing Director Avignon Festival - France), Nele Hertling (Vice President of the Academy of Arts Berlin, Member Strategy Group “A Soul for Europe” – Germany), Michal Merczyński (General Director Malta Festival Poznan and Nostalgia Festival Poznan - Poland), and Annemie Vanackere (Artistic and Managing Director HAU Hebbel am Ufer, former Artistic Director Rotterdamse Schouwburg - Germany/Netherlands).

More information about the Atelier POZNAN 2014 can be found on the Atelier website.