Save the Date: FEST FORUM 2025 on November 6–7 in Krakow

The guiding theme of the first, April edition of Fest Forum was Opening, as it launched the discussion and set out further directions for action.

The November edition of the event is being organized under the motto Balance. Behind this word lies our aspiration to develop sustainable solutions for festivals in various aspects, such as cooperation, financing, community-building, respect for the natural environment, creating a friendly working environment and multidimensional strategies, as well as cross-sector collaboration. We also understand the concept of Balance symbolically: in our view, festivals should support the comprehensive development of their participants, offer them respite and entertainment, but also make it possible for more than just a select few to remain within a circle of values.

Fest Forum was created out of a desire to establish a space where festival organizers could exchange experiences and develop solutions for the future. The event, organized together with partners from across Poland and with the participation of the European Festivals Association, attracted very broad interest from the community and was received extremely positively. Lectures, panels, discussions, and workshops led to the development of a list of recommendations and made it possible to identify the most important and urgent issues, such as the image of festivals, their social and environmental responsibility, cooperation with the creative sector, as well as financing and legal and accounting matters.

The outcomes of the work of a several-dozen-person team of participants representing both large and small festivals from across Poland were compiled in the form of a report. It points to the need to change the way we talk about festivals, which are carriers of values as well as valuable partners for the state, local governments, public and private institutions, and creative communities. Defining and developing solutions to shared challenges will allow festivals not only to survive, but also to grow — so that communities and local governments, artists’ and producers’ circles, audiences, and local infrastructure can develop alongside them.

The November event will include an industry strand, consisting of closed meetings, debates, and workshops, as well as a strand open to the public. The full program will be announced in mid-September.

Co-organization: Institute of Anthropology and Ethnology at Adam Mickiewicz University, Museum of Polish Song in Opole, SLOT Art Festival, Krakow Festival Office, National Centre for Culture, Centre for the Development of Creative Industries, European Festivals Association

FEST FORUM Program Council: Katarzyna Jakubowiak, Waldemar Kuligowski, Carolina Pietyra, Jarosław Wasik, Aleksandra Zając

Media partner: Newsweek

Partner: Hevre

Host city: Krakow