Reflections on the Atelier Donostia/San Sebastián
An article from Ana sharing her reflections on participating in the Atelier Donostia/San Sebastián 2025 for Young Festival Managers.
The Atelier is a 7-day training programme organised by The Festival Academy. The format was initiated by the European Festivals Association in 2006 and is deeply rooted in the essence of festivals—art, artists, and audiences.
The Atelier in Donostia/San Sebastián 2025 for Young Festival Managers by The Festival Academy was a unique, intense, and emotional experience. The synchronicity of 47 selected people coming from all continents and 35 different countries was kind of magical since the first day, something difficult to believe or describe. It seemed that even when coming from very different contexts, participants arrived with the same mindset, open to engage with each other as well as with the local context. The dFERIA – Performing Arts Fair, Victoria Eugenia Theatre and Donostia Kultura teams were incredible hosts which offered a real experience helping us to dive into the local context of Donostia-San Sebastián and the traditions and culture from the Basque Country.
Among the experts and mentors accompanying the process there were renowned figures such as: Natacha Melo - Educator, Curator, and Independent Cultural Manager - Uruguay; Eduardo Bonito - Independent Curator and Performing Arts Advisor - Brazil/ Spain; Priscila Santana - Curator, Conductor, Educator, Scholar and Programming Manager for SummerStage Festival - Brazil/ USA; Marko Athisaari - Technology Entrepreneur, Musician, former Artistic Director of Helsinki Festival, and co-founder House of Sound - Finland; Isabel Ferreira - Artistic Director of Arbola Festival - Spain; Orwa Nyrabia - Artistic Director of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), President of the Board of The Festival Academy – Syria/ Netherlands; Ibrahim Owais - Sound Artist, Creative Producer, Founder of Recordat, and core member of Radio Alhara and Wonder Cabinet - Palestine; Mac Andre Arboleda - Artist, Digital Rights Advocate, and Cultural Organizer – Philippines; Princess Sibanda - Scholar Artivist – Zimbabwe/ South Africa.
Additionally, external participants included Florian Borchmeyer - Curator of Festival International New Drama (FIND) – Germany; Ilona Goyeneche - Cultural Manager and Performing Arts Curator – Chile / Mexico; Gerardo Salinas - City Dramaturge at KVS Brussels and Artistic Director of Próximamente Festival – Argentina/ Belgium; Amaia Serrulla - Head of Thought and Discussion & Head of Documentation and Films department of the San Sebastian Film Festival – Spain; and Eloísa Vaello Marco - Head of the Department of Cultural Cooperation and Promotion of the AECID – Spain.
Here are my thoughts
I could witness a learning process that was non-hierarchical and very much reciprocal, relating to each other from the greatest respect and care. There was so much passion and emotion when each of the participants shared their festivals and projects. A sense of ownership but at the same time of solidarity, an offer to share it with others and continue to co-create it together. There was a common understanding that, especially in the time of polycrisis, polarisation and wars we are all living, we need one another, uniting our efforts is the only way forward. I could feel the power of collective, that filled the hearts and souls of the participants, and also mine. This was not my first time witnessing the energy that generates connecting with others as humans through arts, and this experience reinforced the believe I already had that there is nothing as powerful as that. This way of connecting also creates more sustainable long-term bonds that can develop into international nets and collaborations, that can be lighter or stronger at times but that endure throughout time.
I am incredibly grateful and transformed by having witnessed this 7-day journey, that was built from one day to the next one, flowing in the smoothest way possible. It was like a dance performance in which everyone was coordinated without having had rehearsed beforehand.
Throughout these days, concepts such as ‘quality’, ‘impact’ and ‘sustainability’ were challenged and questioned. “Festival making as an artistic process” was a headline tackled from diverse perspectives. Many questions were raised, and I would not say that absolute solutions were drawn from them, but that was also not the purpose. Instead many reflections and more questions came up.
Participants were encouraged to think what is meaningful for them and discussed the importance of not letting yourself fall into the trap of ticking boxes that in the end lose their meaning, just to follow concepts that are dictated by others. There was an invitation and space to reflect on questions such as: What is the level of clarity of the words we use? What can we do for the things that we care about and what can you do from your respective places and contexts? What is impact and can it be measured? Should we explore and practice the concept of ‘smallness’? How do you fund your festival and what are the implications from the chosen funding model? Is curation a way of exploring common humanity? For whom do we do our festivals? How real is diversity within our structures? Can we think beyond the system? When you scale up who do you leave behind? When you are independent, what does it actually mean? How do you care for each other? What is the ‘centre’ and what is the ‘periphery’ and who defines this?
Thanks to the facilitation of the amazing Vigdís Jakobsdóttir, theatre director, educator, and former Artistic Director of Reykjavík Arts Festival (Iceland), and Thobile Maphanga, choreographer, writer, and curator of JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience (South Africa) a red thread was created travelling through these questions and conversations creating bonds and relations that took us closer to the ways and forms of international collaboration we could dream of: more real, more caring, more intimate, stronger and sustainable.
By Ana Benavides Otero
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The European Festivals Association (EFA) initiated the Atelier for Young Festival Managers in 2006 and launched The Festival Academy in 2013. The training programmes within The Festival Academy are one of EFA’s core activities.
Upcoming Ateliers for Young Festival Managers:
21 to 27 September 2025: Amman, Jordan, organised in partnership with Studio 8 and IDEA – International Dance Encounter Amman and in collaboration with the The National Center for Culture and Arts (NCCA). More information.
20 to 26 November 2025: Chemnitz, Germany, in partnership with Chemnitz European Capital of Culture 2025. Apply before 31 March.
Pictures: Pablo Cifuentes & Morgan Creativos