A Greeting from the minister of Cultural Affairs of Saxony-Anhalt to OSTranenie 93, the First International Video Festival at the Bauhaus Dessau

With the theme: "OSTranenie Shattered Myths - New Realities" the 1.International Video Festival at the Bauhaus Dessau has attempted to grasp at a problem with far reaching implications.

It will left to later generations to historically order and fully evaluate the revolutionary changes occuring in the states of the former East Block. However the authentic description, as well as the artistic consideration of these new realities, is already a task of the present. In this sense the field audio-visual media is evidence of a very special aesthetic contribution while at the same time encompassing an enormous documentary value.

Specifically the Video Festival at the Bauhaus Dessau offers a new forum for young Central and East European artists to present their views on their changed living environments, as well as on the challenges of the reorganization of society.

Beyond that, the meeting of film producers, artists, as well as the public from East and West, renders possible a dialogue which will further enhance mutual understanding. It is my hope then, that the entries to the Festival may raise interesting questions and offer an opportunity for discussion concerning the process of European unification and the consolidation of the young democracies of Central and Eastern Europe.

Ultimately, this promising media and art event at the Bauhaus Dessau will provide important impulses for the development of the film and media culture in the state of Saxony-Anhalt. In this sense I wish the 1. International Video Festival to be a successful journey and one that, by its significant meaning, will attract the public's attention.

Dr. Werner Sobetzko