transmediale is preparing to get in/compatible in 2012. The theme in/compatible probes the artistic imagination that is developed in a network culture where everything seems to connect, but not all fits in or works together. Under this festival theme we will present a diverse international programme: a two-day thematic symposium, a curated exhibition, an extensive video programme and a performance series which includes the legendary Joshua Light Show. Another highlight is the launch of a new project platform, the reSource for transmedial culture, which will present itself through an experimental programme of workshops, open discussions and performative interventions. The occasion of the 25th anniversary of transmediale will be marked by special screenings and panel discussions. On top of all this, we are partnering up with CTM for a festival Vorspiel consisting of partner events spread all over the city in the weekend immediately preceding our opening.

// Symposium in/compatible: systems | publics | aesthetics
This two-day symposium of interdisciplinary panels and artistic interventions addresses the in/compatible thematic according to three interrelated streams, discussing political, social and cultural incompatibilities from macro, micro and artistic points of view. Each stream is hosted by a chair: Chris Salter (ca), Krystian Woznicki (de) and Rosa Menkman (nl). Some of the speakers participating in the symposium are Stefan and Ralph Heidenreich (de), Tsila Hassine and Ziv Neeman (il), Orit Halpern (us) and Jussi Parikka (fi).

Keynotes will be given by Graham Harman (us), Jodi Dean (us) and Matthew Fuller (uk).

We are very glad to announce that this year's Marshall McLuhan Lecture will be held by Andrew Feenberg (ca).

// Exhibition Dark Drives: Uneasy Energies in Technological Times

The exhibition curated by Jacob Lillemose refers to the dark sides of our technologised lives. Includes artists such as: Sture Johannesson (se), Ant Farm (us), UBERMORGEN.COM (at/ch), Daniel García Andújar (es), Art 404 (us), JK Keller (us), 0100101110101101.ORG (it), Jennifer Chan (ca) and Chris Cunningham (uk).

// Video Programme Satellite Stories

For this year's video programme, Marcel Schwierin is curating several screenings addressing the in/compatible topic in terms of ambiguous pairs such as people and products, past and present. With works by Babak Afrassiabi and Nasrin Tabatabai (nl), Dellbrügge & de Moll (us/de), Harun Farocki (de), Dominic Gagnon (ca), Isabelle Hayeur (ca), Nina Kurtela (hr/de), Basim Magdy (eg), Jesse McLean (us), Bjørn Melhus (no/de), Neozoon (de), Roee Rosen (il), Aura Satz (es), Andreas Schneider (de) and others. This year’s guest curators are Maha Maamoun and Sarah Rifky (eg).

// Performance Programme The Ghosts in the Machine

The performance programme is investigating the analogue as the ghost that keeps haunting our supposedly digital culture. It includes the spectacular Joshua Light Show – a vintage psychedelic act that has been reworked into a contemporary meeting between analogue and digital audiovisuals. Some of our further performance acts: Billy Roisz and dieb13 (at), Mario de Vega (mx) and Flora Könemann (de).

// reSource for transmedial culture

The newly initiated project reSource for transmedial culture supports and initiates workshops, discussions and performative lectures engaging (trans-)local hackers, artists and scientists. Some of the participants are Roberta Buiani and Alessandra Renzi (it), Johannes P. Osterhoff (de), Prayas Abhinav (in), Telekommunisten (de), Morten Riis (dk) and Shu Lea Cheang (tw).

// 25 Years of transmediale

The 2012 festival will mark the 25 year anniversary of the transmediale. This will be made present in different sections of the programming. In the reSource programme, Florian Wüst is hosting an open discussion on the past and future of media collectives, a topic that relates to the foundation of the festival as VideoFilmFest in 1988. In our video programme, works from the early history of transmediale will appear in dialogue with the contemporary works. For the last day of the festival, there will be a special transmediale Unarchived event, an interplay of artefacts and people from the programming of the past 25 years.