Building avatar masks, coming up with sounds and taking part in a video shoot – Filmmaker Tobias Kipp and the 11 to 13-year-old pupils of the Brandwerder Primary School had a lot planned for their workshop. Self-designed avatars with superpowers and special abilities helped the young participants, most of whom have refugee experiences, to come to grips with what has gone out of joint in their lives.

The workshop is part of the participatory project “Einwurf für...” (“Insert for…”), which as part of our “Out of Joint” festival allows Berliners whose voices are rarely heard to have their say.

The resulting film and the avatar masks can also be viewed in the vestibule during the festival from 14 to 27 November.

Speaking and playing: Nazanin, Madina, Atena, Elisabeth, Sana and students from Brandwerder Primary School.

“Wanted: An animal that embodies my own characteristics!” Tobias Kipp and the pupils began their workshop with this idea. These animals initially helped the pupils talk about their own strengths and weaknesses.

An avatar not only stands for actual characteristics, but also possesses the superpowers one might like to have. So imaginative profiles and drawings of such beings with limitless abilities were created next. Then the avatars introduced themselves: “I’m Jenny, I’m human and also a bird...”

With the help of a mask-maker, the process continued to building avatar masks from what were largely found materials: “What it is inside me, and what can be seen of me on the outside?” An avatar can show all of this!

Violist Veronika and percussionist Christian from the Orchestra Academy of the Konzerthausorchester came to the soundtrack workshop. Together with them, participants came up with suitable sounds for each avatar for the video. And at some point, they opened up more about themselves. It’s easier to talk about things through a mask – especially when the stories are not so easy to tell.

Contributors
Music: Al-Farabi Choir; Veronika Kolosovska, Christoph Lindner (Kurt Sanderling Academy of the Konzerthausorchester Berlin)
Concept, direction: Tobias Kipp
Mask-making, costumes: Kim Eisbrich
Camera: Thilo Schneider
Sound recording: Niklas Potthoff
Mixing: Jan Brauer
Project coordination: Felicitas Butt, Hannah Mulac
Workshop supervision: Dorothee Wendt, Johanne Braun

A project by Konzerthaus Berlin in cooperation with Al-Farabi Musikakademie e.V. Supported by Commerzbank-Stiftung, Berliner Projektfonds Kulturelle Bildung, Zitadelle Spandau, Spandau District Office.