Lars Henrik Gass, the long-standing director of the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen, is leaving the film festival and will become the founding director of the new House for Film and Media (HFM) in Stuttgart. According to Press Release the 59-year-old author, film curator and cultural manager is regarded as an important theorist of contemporary cinema and a critical voice in the cultural sector. He was appointed director of the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen in 1997.
"We very much regret the departure of Lars Henrik Gass. He has steadily developed the traditional film festival as a globally recognised trademark of our city through the clever inclusion of art and media trends. With him, a style-defining era of the film festival comes to an end, in which the Short Film Festival moved from the Stadthalle back into the city centre and opened up to the art world, pop culture and digital developments to attract a new audience. We wish Lars Henrik Gass every success in his new role," explains Oberhausen's Lord Mayor Daniel Schranz. The call against all forms of anti-Semitism, which Gass published and advocated as one of the few prominent representatives of the German cultural scene shortly after the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel on 7 October 2023, "corresponds to the stance of our city, which we have repeatedly demonstrated since the Hamas attack on Israel," emphasises the Lord Mayor: "We have encouraged him in his clear statement."
The representatives of the shareholder, the City of Oberhausen, are currently working on a concept for the succession of the management and artistic direction of the festival.
"After 27 years as director of the Short Film Festival, I am leaving Oberhausen with heartfelt thanks to the staff, the audience and the representatives of the city for the trust they have placed in me," explained Gass. His time as festival director included the discovery of outstanding filmmakers such as Andrea Arnold, Christoph Hochhäusler and Mike Mills, the introduction of the world's first prize for music videos at a film festival, many innovative technical innovations such as digital platforms for submitting films and the founding of the Short Film Working Group and the Film Festival Working Group, which were also initiated by him. He was also responsible for the first fully digital edition of a film festival in Germany during the coronavirus pandemic, which caused quite a stir.
As founding director in Stuttgart, he will be able to work with a large planning team to shape the content, concept and organisation of the Haus für Film und Medien Stuttgart (HFM), which is unique in Germany, says Gass: "This pioneering institution is designed as an analogue and digital location for moving images in all their forms, from the past to the future." In addition to film, all moving image formats from animation, games and software to virtual and augmented reality will find a home here on around 4,500 square metres from 2029.
