A Book Festival that changed the city of Pordenone
About this good practice
Pordenone is a small municipality in the north-east of Italy with 51,818 inhabitants, with a strong economy based on manufacturing. Pordenone was associated with the idea of work only, and the city centre was full of empty buildings with the need of a new vocation.
The idea, born from the Chamber of Commerce, and supported by a strategic vision of the Regional Government, was to change the perspective of the city thanks to a cultural festival.
The Festival changed the city centre, involving citizens and reshaping the use of public and private buildings devoted to host meetings with more than 600 national and international writers and authors.
The city of Pordenone changes, hosting events in 41 different locations during 5 different days. Also, the relationship between citizens and the city changed too in this “widespread home”, becoming proud guests and contributing to the local promotion of the Festival.
The Book Festival includes 300 meetings every year and recently started to extend also in neighboring municipalities, where local administrations have decided to support it and intend to sprout the seed of literary culture even in their smaller contexts.
General public, local companies, tourism companies, local authorities, writers, publishers, tourists, citizens, cultural operators.
Resources needed
Organization: 1,100 million € per year.
The Region invests in the Festival every year.
Employees:
5 full-time
1 part-time
3 artistic consultants
“Pordenone Angels”, young volunteers moved by spirit of service to the city, taking care of the organization. Figures:
2021: 192
2022: 193
2023: 213
Evidence of success
Study on economic impact of the Festival: multiplier effect is 1 to 7 (1€ invested provides 7€ of revenue).
Locations selected in Pordenone for the Festival are 30, between institutional buildings, 2 schools, 1 square, 1 Cathedral, 1 theatre, 1 company, 5 tensile structures. Regarding locations outside Pordenone, 12 sites of which 4 theatres and 2 squares, also with an alternative in case of bad weather conditions.
Figures 2023:
110.000 visitors;
334 events;
31 press conferences;
150 journalists
Potential for learning or transfer
The Festival model is based on total involvement of the area in a major cultural event that changed the urban area of the city. The practice can also be transfered to other territorial contexts and according to different themes. For example, from 2022 Prague has become a venue of the Festival, as a source of inspiration to strongly reaffirm culture as a powerful lever of change and freedom.
Moreover, the Festival organizes programs and meetings to engage schools and students, such as "Programma ragazzi", attended in 2023 by 8554 students. The motivation of integrating them with the cultural context of Festival can be easily transferred beyond the boundaries of Pordenone Festival.
The Festival is a concrete example of urban regeneration, showing how, through culture, cities can be revived, giving new life to urban centres. The results of Festival, both economically and socially, show that culture is an economic and social engine of a territory, giving new life to buildings and venues.
Further information
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Good practice owner
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