For 20 years, Karambolage has been looking for connections between French and German cultures. In just five-minute episodes, illustrated by graphic designers and local artists, they tell anecdotes and curiosities from ARTE, the free European public broadcaster. The format is celebrating its anniversary with the release of a Spanish version, compiling 50 on-demand stories related to the country every week. “Starting from a specific object, the authors interpret an aspect of their culture in their own way,” commented the format’s creator, Claire Doutriaux, in Madrid at the end of November.
Karambolage España, for example, tells the story of Pheasant Island as short audiovisual graphic novels. It is the smallest condominium in the world. It belongs to Spain for six months of the year and to France for another six months and has been the scene of important agreements between the two countries for six centuries. The animator Lorenzo Recio tells very emotionally and in the first person perspective what it was like to grow up in France in the sixties and seventies as the son of Spanish immigrants.
The compilation of local customs, traditions and paradoxes will also explain topics such as the accent of the letter ñ, with images by Melody da Fonseca, Elena Pomares and Marta Gennari, among others. Or the true origin of the Manila scarf. Or the experience of a French woman who was born with a love of wine when she discovered what Kalimotxo is in Spain. Or that of a German woman when she discovered in Valencia that not all oranges are sweet, there are also bitter ones. And they are also called border oranges.
This Spanish adaptation, currently broadcast in the various ARTE windows until July 2024, tells these historical or social curiosities “from a strict and playful perspective and fighting against stereotypes.” Accents are welcome in this program,” says the Frenchwoman. The aim is to give Spanish viewers a better understanding of their culture, while ARTE brings Spanish heritage closer to neighbors across Europe.
The Spanish division of ARTE.tv, the European network’s cultural streaming platform, adds 1,700 new free programs to its catalog every year, explains its manager Raquel Santos. YouTube is one of its great windows. For this reason, a new channel has just been created on the ARTE.tv Cultura video platform. December is the month in which the ArteKino Festival is celebrated virtually. From December 1st to 31st, a selection of films by young European filmmakers will be available to watch for free on their various platforms. The viewer is also the jury: they use their votes to choose the winner of the competition.
ARTE continues to publish every week a new edition of the Spanish version of the information space Arte Europa Semanal, which the chain created last year in collaboration with EL PAÍS. In just 20 minutes, he personally tells the audience about the issues that concern the continent’s citizens.
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