Press
OCTOBER 2007
Erste Bank: Main Sponsor of VIENNALE 2007
For the fourth time, Erste Bank is acting as VIENNALE’s main sponsor this year. The bank’s commitment to Austria’s biggest international film festival is part of “Kontakt – The Arts and Civil Society Program of Erste Bank Group”. As a special treat, the cinema-goers will receive a fancy “Kontakt”-wallet this year.
„VIENNALE has become inseparable from Vienna’s contemporary cultural scene. It’s a huge event, and its impact spreads out further into Central Europe each year. The festival’s international programming and diversity make it an ideal networking point for cinema-lovers from the entire region“, says Boris Marte, Head of Corporate Sponsoring at Erste Bank and founder of „Kontakt“, to explain the bank’s ongoing commitment to VIENNALE.
This year, Erste Bank has commissioned a special treat for the most devoted cineasts: the so-called “Kontaktbörse”, or “Kontakt-wallet”. This stylish wallet exclusively designed for “Kontakt” by Austrian designer Eva Blut will be distributed among those afficionados queueing up at the box offices on October 6th and 7th, the start of the ticket sale. In addition, those who present an Erste Bank-card when buying a batch of 10 or 20 tickets will receive this stylish festival-accessory. It is made from calfskin leather, its strident green colour giving it a distinct avant-garde touch.
Like in recent years, “Kontakt” will again publish a special VIENNALE edition of its “Report” magazine. The current issue tries to answer the question, “What is the West?”. It documents views of the West held by inhabitants of what used to be “the East”, in an attempt to invert the west-centric analyses of the East that were long common. In interviews, essays and documentary features, young journalists and writers from Central Europe present the region’s thoughts and ideas to the public. Once you have picked up your copy, you might want to head to Künstlerhaus-Kino. There, “Kontakt” will be happy to host you in its “Kontakt Lounge”, whether you want to read, rest, chat, or revel there, or simply wait until your next movie starts.
With 16 million customers in eight countries, Erste Bank Group is Central and Eastern Europe’s largest financial service provider. Its „Kontakt“ programme is the embodiment of its commitment to supporting all kinds of artistic production, with the aim of enabling and empowering artists and of enhancing the cross-border networks in the region. In the field of film, therefore Erste Bank Group supports a number of festivals in addition to VIENNALE, such as FINALE Plzen and the International Documentary Film Festival Jihlava, both in the Czech Republic.
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