Cultural beacons

The Berlin Biennale is an exhibition of international contemporary art which the German Federal Cultural Foundation began supporting as a cultural beacon in 2004. Since 1998 the Berlin Biennale has presented international perspectives on current social issues and has promoted sustainability and participation with its innovative formats.

The Tanztriennale brings together diverse forms of contemporary dance – from urban dance to ballet – and creates opportunities for artistic exchange, new formats and encounters. The impulses generated by this newly minted cultural beacon are already shaping the future of the dance scene. The first Tanztriennale took place in Hamburg in summer 2026.

Since its debut in 1955, the documenta has become one of the most influential and internationally acclaimed exhibitions of contemporary art in the world. Such large-scale international events require education programmes that take the needs of the public into account. The German Federal Cultural Foundation is supporting the education programme of the documenta 16 in 2026/27.

Established in 1964, the Theatertreffen is arguably the most important theatre festival in the German-speaking world today. Each year it presents outstanding theatre productions from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, setting benchmarks for artistic quality, social discourse and sustainable development in theatre.

The Donaueschingen Music Festival is one of the oldest and most time-honoured festivals of New Music in the world, and the most highly acclaimed of its kind in Germany. Established in 1921, the festival has been organised by the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, radio broadcaster SWR and Donaueschingen since 1950. From the very beginning, it has shaped the history of Western art music.

Founded in 1988, the transmediale has become one of the most influential international platforms of digital art and culture. As one of the Foundation’s recognised cultural beacons, the festival combines artistic practice with social, technological and scientific perspectives, while creating new opportunities for discourse on the digital developments of the present day. 

Established in 1980, the Frankfurt-based Ensemble Modern has become one of the world’s foremost ensembles of New Music. For over 40 years, the self-organised association comprising some 20 international soloists has delivered pioneering performances with complements that can be adjusted in size depending on the specific work, thereby covering the entire spectrum of contemporary music.

Since 2004 the World Cinema Fund has been promoting international film productions and filmmakers in regions with underdeveloped funding infrastructures. The funded films intensively explore the reality of their respective countries, bear the individual signature of their directors, and are distinguished by a unique cinematic style and political-historic sensitivity.