Inside Culture #8 (Stephen Frears, Panama Papers, Conflict + The City & Cultural Value)

Broadcast on 30th May 2016

On tonight’s episode of Inside Culture we discuss the Panama Papers, meet the director of Florence Foster Jenkins, hear about the real value of culture and find out some of the ways cities rebuild after conflicts.

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Presenter Fionn Davenport speaks to director Stephen Frears about his latest movie, Florence Foster Jenkins. We discuss the impact of the Panama Papers on the art world, explore the effect of conflict on the built environment, and speak to Professor Geoffrey Crossick about the Cultural Value Project.

The Panama Papers exposed the secrets hidden in offshore companies used by people in every corner of the world. The arts market was one sector affected by the leak. We meet with art economist Clare McAndrew and director of the Molesworth Gallery, Ronan Lyons, to discuss the good and bad sides of art economics.

Stephen Frears, British film director, speaks to us about his new film Florence Foster Jenkins. The film is the latest in a long and diverse list of films by Frears that include Philomena, The Queen, Dangerous Liaisons, and High Fidelity. He will be appearing at Borris Festival of Writing & Ideas. See festivalofwritingandideas.com for more information.

Conflict + The City is a free two-day public conference taking place in Dublin this week. It explores the effect of conflict on the built environment and how cities are rebuilt in its aftermath. Fionn is joined by Dr Ellen Rowley, UCD School of Architecture, who is also one of the organisers of the conference, and by Kathleen James-Chakraborty, professor of art history at UCD. Go to conflictandthecity.ie to find out about the conference. Roberto Rossellini’s film ‘Germany Year Zero’ will be screened at the Irish Film Institute (ifi.ie).

Professor Geoffrey Crossick, director of the Arts & Humanities Research Council’s Cultural Value Project, also joins us. He’s one of the authors of a 200-page report (available at ahrc.ac.uk). This examines the value of the arts and culture, as well as the difference that they make to individuals and society. The Trinity Long Room Hub Humanities Horizons Lecture for 2016 was delivered by Crossick on Wednesday, 25 May, at Trinity College Dublin. Check out tcd.ie for more.