Festival of the regions

The Festival of Regions invites artists, cultural initiatives and people with cultural, social and political commitment to once again not let things take their course. The upcoming Festival of the Regions will take place from 13 to 22 June 2025 in the Innviertel region of Upper Austria, with the main focus on Braunau am Inn as the festival location.

Under the theme "Realistic Dreams" we will deal with the omnipresent feeling of uncertainty and look to the future without hesitation. We search for new connections, narratives and utopias.

Region as a starting point for change
The Festival of Regions has been exploring and performing in a region of Upper Austria every two years since 1993. The focus has often been on regions as a counter-model to globalisation and internationalisation. Today, the relationships between regions and metropolises are more complex.

In over 30 years, the image of the regions has changed, from places of retreat to places of transit with a new coexistence. Some apparent opposites have become ambiguities. These ambiguities form the starting point for artistic and social design at the festival. The aim is always to make a region dance to the tune of its own contradictions. The festival is always looking for new ways to understand regions as laboratories for social change.

The Festival of Regions focusses on current and timeless issues. It addresses social issues through art and cultural projects. International artists come into contact with the local population, while local cultural associations work with supra-regional artists. Passers-by become part of the festival.

The fog never lifts
Uncertainty plagues us. Is this still a dream or already reality? What is true about an image, a story, a statement, and what is false? Certainties are in limbo, but isn't this the opportunity for new insights and discoveries?

We are faced with existential decisions. Where do we actually want to go? How do we get to or from the Innviertel? Viewpoints are shifting. Borders are shifting. Soil is sealed. Prices are exploding. What do house builders and those who don't want to build a house do? Who do we pay attention to? Who has to fight to be seen? Is there still a common public space for everyone, or does life take place behind the garden fence by your own pool? What does this mean for a region to which many move, from which many move away and perhaps come back again? How and where do we come together at all? And how do we stay in touch?

Realistic dreams
When we have already seen everything in films, newspapers, on the internet, we have images in our heads of the most terrible things and also the most beautiful things, of the cruelest moments but also those that touch us. If we are understood so precisely by the algorithms that no wishes remain unfulfilled:

What does that mean for the spaces in which we move, for our interaction with one another and the banalities of everyday life, which may seem even more ordinary due to our distorted view as media consumers.
With  "Realistic Dreams" the Festival of Regions searches for moments of dreams and fiction and asks us how sober we can actually be in our possibilities. And whether there isn't a cruelty in realism that thwarts everything?

Braunau am Inn as a festival location
Braunau am Inn, located directly on the German border on the River Inn, presents itself as a typical small Austrian town with picturesque streets, charming houses from the 15th century and a long-established industry. Nevertheless, the town is perceived by outsiders primarily through the Adolf Hitler birthplace.

Braunau seems to be in a state of limbo, as if the next scandal is imminent. The perception from the outside is almost completely dominated by a single building and its historical use, leaving little room for other narratives that make up the town's identities. We want to consciously look beyond this one-sided image, imagine the future and remember the past in many voices.

Leaving directly from the Braunau town square, the Inn bridge leads us to neighbouring Simbach. A walk away without getting out of breath. Economically, historically and in everyday life, these two border towns are closely interwoven. You meet people from Braun in Simbach and people from Simbach in Braunau. Nowhere else does a national border seem so fluid and permeable.

In the year 2025, we can see Braunau as a place where collective work on utopias is possible. A place that surprises us, that allows us to find moments that unite us and clarify our position in the world - a place where we stand.

About the Festival of Regions
The Festival of Regions has been taking place every two years in different locations and regions in Upper Austria since 1993. Founded by a young generation of artists, cultural workers and activists, the festival is closely linked to the development of the "independent art and culture scene". It has always been about promoting young, non-established artists, strengthening the existing good forces in the regions and enabling contemporary, critical & courageous art and culture away from the centres. The festival sees itself as an impetus for change and as a stimulus for new trends, initiatives and projects. The focus is on cooperation between regional, national and international artists with local associations, cultural initiatives and open dialogue with local people.