Organising a festival in a time of crisis
“The board was also appointed during this crisis period. That’s why we knew straightaway that we had to start thinking about a different format. Given that this is the first time that we are organising an online event, it’s really great that we can work together with the other cities where this festival is being held,” the organisation points out. Stukafest TV, which will be aired every Friday in February, is not only made up of acts from students based in Rotterdam, but also from other student cities, such as Nijmegen, Utrecht and Groningen. It was a pretty obvious step to go ahead with the festival online, but all in all, the main challenge is to carry out your plans well. That’s why, for example, we decided not to do a livestream, but to record everything in advance instead. So, that way we can guarantee a high level of quality.”
Advantages of an online event
The mood this year will be different from other years. Not in a crowded student room anymore, but you get to watch all the acts behind your laptop. Despite this, the organisation does see advantages too: “Our goal this year is to promote cultural activities in the city. This is badly needed, especially this year, because the cultural agendas are almost empty. Stukafest TV has the potential to reach more people and discover the local scene as a consequence.” “Another cool thing about this year is that you will not only be able to see acts from your own city, but also from other cities. This doesn’t just put the spotlight on even more fantastic acts, but the artists themselves gain more publicity as well.“
How things will be done this year
This year, you will once again be able to put together your own programme during Stukafest. Except that instead of live acts, you can check out online the ones that you want to see. In between the acts, you can ‘cycle’ through the cities and get a good impression of a selection of the various student residences in the Netherlands. Three different cities get their turn each week. The acts from Rotterdam are to be featured in week 7.
Funding
Organising a large online event like this calls for a lot of additional organisational skills. “We are working together with 70 students from twelve different cities and the national board. It is always difficult to attract financial support in the cultural sector, but the pandemic has made this even harder. That’s why we are trying crowdfunding this year for the first time. We’re aiming to fund some of the costs for Stukafest TV.
The organization has announced that it has collected enough money on December 14 to provide a great 20th edition and to successfully launch Stukafest 2021 in February.
