COVID-19: The pandemic that triggered a digital shift
Photo by Radek Grzybowski via Unsplash
It’s hard to overstate the havoc that coronavirus has wreaked on our lives. Cases are rising daily in Europe and many countries have come to accept the inevitability of extreme measures, asking its citizens to self-isolate and only leave home for the most basic necessities—food, medicine, exercise.
In Europe, the epicentre, as we are now all aware, is Italy. On 9 March 2020, Giuseppe Conte’s government declared a national emergency, putting an end to much of the country’s social and cultural activity, including sporting events, concerts, museums and clubs. Creative and cultural events were postponed or even cancelled. The audiovisual sector was immediately impacted: Netflix changed its plans to shoot scenes of the upcoming movie “Red Notice” in Italy, and Paramount Pictures has postponed a three-week shoot of “Mission: Impossible 7” in Venice.
This week, Germany, France, Greece and Cyprus also declared a state of emergency and took their own crisis measures. Europe is on lock-down.
The effect on the cultural and creative sector (CCS) has been palpable: as activity has plummeted, ticket sales and revenues streams have dried up. To get a hint of what it looks like when an entire sector applies the brakes, Cine Europa has compiled what can only be described as an epic list of festivals and other cultural events around Europe that have been cancelled or postponed.
In a crisis that’s unprecedented in living memory, it’s a challenge to even look for a silver lining, especially for a particularly hard-hit sector like the CCS. And yet, good things may yet emerge, innovations that, in the long term, will make the CCS better and stronger.
“In a crisis that’s unprecedented in living memory, it’s a challenge to even look for a silver lining, especially for a particularly hard-hit sector like the CCS.”
European bodies are already mobilising to protect the high proportion of self-employed and freelance workers in the CCS. In a time of crisis, these kinds of workers are particularly vulnerable to adverse social and economic effects. Pearle, the European federation of organisations and enterprises in the music, performing arts and live performance sector, for example, is calling upon the EU and Member State governments to take targeted measures to support CCS professionals once the crisis has ended.
The European Commission also put out a statement mid-March aimed at Creative Europe partners, reassuring them that they are: “applying the maximum flexibility... in the implementation of the programme, within the limits of the applicable legal framework”. The Commission is also asking Creative Europe partners to share their art across social media using the hashtag #CreativeEuropeAtHome, helping foster a sense of community amongst European artists and keeping the makers and consumers of European culture connected.
Beyond institutional help, the sector is taking it upon itself to keep going despite the extreme limitations imposed by the pandemic, bringing music, art, movies and more right into people’s homes.
London’s BFI Flare Festival (20-29 March), for instance, is giving ticket-holders digital streaming access to a number of features and shorts. It’s also hosting live Q&A sessions with filmmakers through its social media channels and going ahead with the closing night DJ sets to keep people dancing (in their own living rooms, of course).
Film festivals across Europe have joined in, with the Vilnius IFF moving more than half of its programme onto streaming platforms and Oberhausen’s International Short Film Festival also preparing to go digital.
VoD platforms across Europe, the Middle East and beyond have also taken the initiative to bring free movies and TV shows to their audiences.
Over in the museum world, the Chateau de Versailles is hosting virtual exhibitions and Amsterdam’ Van Gogh Museum is bringing “Vincent to you”.
The digital shift across the cultural and creative industries in recent weeks has been immense. New business models are being explored, new audiences are being reached, and digital tools are being used to an unprecedented extent.
Whether this will change the ways we produce and consume culture forever will only become apparent once the crisis is over. But one thing is sure. In an increasingly digital world, new workable models that can act as complementary safeguards to the viability and sustainability of the CCS can only be a good thing.
Arne van Vliet is the Creative Director of TrueMotion. He’s passionate about the creative arts and specialises in finding funding for innovative creative projects that are reshaping the arts landscape in Europe.