Date: April 19, 2025
Statement from the Organizing Committee of the 12th International Video Poetry Festival
The Institute for Experimental Arts wishes to dedicate a special tribute to the distinguished Malaysian poet Umar Uzair, who was unfortunately unable to attend the 12th International Video Poetry Festival in Athens, Greece (April 11-12, 2025) due to circumstances beyond his control.
Detailed Account of the Situation
Mr. Umar Uzair was scheduled to perform at the festival on April 12, 2025, as part of our international lineup of spoken word artists. Despite all preparations and arrangements being in place, including his travel funding provided by the Malaysian government’s cultural exchange program, Mr. Uzair was unable to reach Athens as planned due to the national general strike that took place in Greece on April 9, 2025.
The general strike, which affected all transportation services including airports and ports, led to the cancellation of numerous flights to and from Greece. Mr. Uzair’s flight was among those affected, and despite his diligent efforts to reschedule his travel arrangements, the backlog of flights and limited availability in the days following the strike made it impossible for him to arrive in Athens in time for his scheduled performance.
Festival Recognition
During the festival, we publicly announced Mr. Uzair’s unfortunate absence to our audience, explaining the circumstances that prevented his participation. The audience expressed their disappointment but also their understanding and solidarity regarding the situation.
We would like to formally express our gratitude to Mr. Umar Uzair for his professionalism and dedication throughout this challenging situation. Despite being unable to attend in person, Mr. Uzair graciously provided us with a video recording of his performance, which was screened at the festival during his originally scheduled time slot on April 12, 2025, at 18:30.
Video Contribution
The video performance titled “Echoes Across Continents: Poetry from Malaysia” was received with great enthusiasm by the festival audience. Mr. Uzair’s powerful poetry exploring themes of cultural identity, displacement, and global solidarity resonated deeply with attendees, and many expressed their hope to see him perform live at a future edition of the festival.
Future Invitation
The Institute for Experimental Arts would like to officially extend an invitation to Mr. Umar Uzair to participate in the 13th International Video Poetry Festival in 2026. We are committed to ensuring his participation and will work closely with the Malaysian cultural authorities to facilitate his travel arrangements.
Official Recognition
This announcement serves as an official acknowledgment that Mr. Umar Uzair was a selected and invited artist for the 12th International Video Poetry Festival, and that his absence was due solely to the unforeseen circumstances of the national general strike in Greece, which was beyond the control of both the artist and the festival organizers.
We confirm that the travel funding provided by the Malaysian government for Mr. Uzair’s participation was appropriately allocated and that the inability to attend was not due to any fault of the artist but rather to exceptional circumstances affecting international travel to Greece during the relevant period.
