Info – Paradise Garden Productions

ABOUT US

Paradise Garden Productions (PG) is a free and non-profit production company headquartered in Berlin. PG makes theatre, film, workshops and exhibitions, often in interlocking or complementary formats. Multimedia, complexity, humour and drama characterise the works of PG. We see the experiences and skills of those involved as the starting point for the joint artistic processes. PG sets itself the task of analysing historical or socio-political conflicts and catalysing them through artistic processes. For this reason, PG focuses its work on disadvantaged communities, issues, locations and their actors. So far, projects have taken place in the Netherlands, Germany, Angola, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, South Africa and Cameroon.

PG is concerned with the global social issues of our time, with suppressed cultures, subcultures, opinions and with bringing about processes of change in society. We believe that engaging with the arts activates people, integrates them into society, brings the hidden to light and ensures personal and socially positive development. The vision of Paradise Garden is a world where art gives people the joy of exploring social and political issues. Through the interactivity and complexity of art, we create awareness of and dialogues on political and social issues and inspire action.

TEAM

For concrete projects we bring together artists from different disciplines in changing constellations. For the names of the actual participants, please see the projects.

Inyalambi Amumba

founding member of PG and representative, development, dramaturgy, research

Inhalambi Amumba was born in Mozambique and grew up there and in Portugal. She is a passionate expert and critic of the political and historical circumstances as well as the cultural scene in Africa and the Portuguese speaking countries. She is a traveller between worlds and cultures. As founding member she had a major influence on all previous PG projects- mainly in the field of project development, dramaturgy and research. She speaks Portuguese, English, French and German. EMAIL

Jens Vilela Neumann

founding member of PG and representative, directing

Jens Vilela Neumann studied acting after Jaques Lecoq, two years of theatre directing and intercultural studies at the Hoogeschool voor de Kunsten Utrecht, Netherlands. For 18 years he has been the director of PG, but has also devoted himself to productions in the municipal theatre and in the independent theatre scene, as well as teaching activities. He directed more than 22 plays, 18 short films, wrote various theatre plays and realised 11 film & theatre projects in Mozambique, Angola, Zimbabwe and Cameroon. In Germany, his works have been performed at various stages, including the Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxenburg-Platz in Berlin in 2022. The content of his work is mostly political and social in nature. Themes such as transcendence and resistance are central.

J.V.N. is since 22 years a white father of POC children, the confrontation with the central issues of PG - racism, colonial reappraisal, migration and integration - concern him on a daily basis, he acts from the perspective of a border crosser, bridge builder and ally, while he is aware that he remains a "learner". EMAIL

Paul - Consultant Communication

Paul supports PG in the creation of our appearances in social networks and in political communication. He studied sociology and political science in Leipzig and has gained a wide range of relevant experience in the course of his professional life in the Bundestag as well as in associations and companies. Paul is also a passionate saxophonist. EMAIL

Matilda Thomas - Finance

Matilda is studying International Business and Management with a focus on Financial Management at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences. She was born in Lisbon, speaks fluent German and English. She has already lived in the US and China and is passionate about decolonial approaches. At PG, she is responsible for manangenment the finances. EMAIL

Joelma Gracia - Production Manager Portugal

Joelma Gracia was born in Mozambique and lives in Portugal. Holder of a university degree in Public Relations and Psychology, she worked for 29 years in television audience measurement in national and international companies where she held management positions. Her interest for storytelling led her to take a course in film directing, during which she made the short film “Mátria”, which was presented at Fantasporto film festival in 2020. EMAIL

Charlotte Wagner – Project management

Charlotte Wagner studied "Language, Literature and Culture" in Giessen and completed her Master's degree in "Transnational Literature Studies: Literature, Theatre and Film" in Bremen. In 2016, she was researching the topic of identity construction through Hip Hop in Brazil. In 2018 she worked in the cultural department of the Mozambican Goethe-Zentrum, followed by work for an international dance and theatre festival in Freiburg. Topics that interest her in particular and which have occupied her through her studies, but also through her exchanges, internships, research and private trips to Latin America, Africa and Europe, are transculturalism, identity, diaspora, migration and integration. Since 2019 she has been working as a cultural manager for Paradise Garden. EMAIL

Florian Ritter - fine art photography, graphic design

Florian Ritter studied media design at the University of Cooperative Education in Ravensburg and worked during this time at the advertising agency McCann-Erickson as Junior Art Director. During this time, his interest in photography grew steadily until, after graduating, he finally decided to escape from advertising and graphic design and concentrate exclusively on photography. Cooperation with PG since 2017. WEBPAGE

Chris van de Blonk - Web design

Chris van der Blonk is part of PG since the first project. He studied cognitive artificial intelligence in Utrecht and has been working as a web developer for a few years. His other passions are painting and DJ'ing.