1991 was not one of the better years for video. Many well-known videomakers didn't produce anything. The emerging generation was rather disappointing, submitting tapes that were often boring if not bad as far as form and content were concerned. Unconsciously imitating what has been produced on video before is becoming a common practice. Many of those who use video technology have not the slightest idea that their ideas have been realized 1579 times before, and often better. Video is a multi-faceted fascinating medium offering like no other audiovisual medium an immensely creative potential and, above all, democratic access. The problem is that the latter tends to become a burden: many seem to take on the vocation of shooting a (video) film because the industry suggests that you just take the camera and go... What is usually neglected is the fact that film and also video depend on the joining of multiple artistic efforts: script, direction, camera, light, sound, editing, music, visual montage etc. - and that an experiment is generated by a unique idea. Yet many videos still mirror a proliferating narcism that is ignorant, stupid and formally unacceptable - a pain in the neck for every viewer. Heaven knows why these tapes are even submitted to a festival when one should not even show them to friends - it might end the friendship. The video culture has reached a critical phase at the beginning of the 90's. Many "seniors" turn to creating video sculptures that are more easily financed by museums or leading galleries, guaranteeing an acceptable fee. Video tapes, offering no profit at all, often depend on unpaid labor and the makers own financial resources. Television - especially in this country -is still reluctant to meet the challenge of creative video. Following the examples of new initiatives in the USA, Great Britain, France, Italy and Spain, some German TV-stations seem to be changing their attitude. Just the same, there are only very few locations for screening video regularly in Germany. Rental fees are relatively expensive because of fewer screenings. Subsidies for such events are rare. A vicious circle. An absurdity: a selection of the VideoFest is touring various foreign countries - but not Germany. There are, however, promising developments as well: the European initiative "Les Cents Lieux", based for the most part in France so far, is a loose union of organizations that repeatedly screen packages offered by distributors at cheaper rates. The union is growing. The "European Video Services", an information service to which, later, will be added a magazine, was founded thanks to the energetic initiative by Alan McCluskey in Geneva. Its aim is to improve the communication among videomakers in Europe. The "VideoXpress" promotes an initiative to establish a model for subsidizing video culture. The cooperating partners for the "VideoXpress" are "Det Danske Filmvaerksted", Copenhagen; Alan McCluskey, Geneva; London Video Access; Nucleo dos Cineastes lndependentes, Lissabon; and the VideoFest/MedienOperative Berlin. Some of these initiatives will be the topic of conferences held during this year's VideoFest. They will be announced in the hall of the Academy of Arts. Is there a video crisis? Only in certain ways, since impressive activities are increasing. As video festivals spread, film festivals open up for video. In southern Europe, especially in Greece, Portugal, Spain and Turkey more and more is produced on video, and unique forms of video art emerge. The situation in eastern Europe is similar. Video can still excite - hopefully!

Micky Kwella, VideoFest