From 16th until 22nd June 2021, 22 emerging festival makers are participating in the Atelier Düsseldorf/Theater der Welt, co-organized by ITI Germany and The Festival Academy – an Initiative of the European Festivals Association. Before the start of the Atelier, we met the four ITI fellows Milena Gehrt, Moutaz Abdulrahman, Valia Katsi and Nada Abdel Wahab, online for an interview about their projects, how their lives and work have been affected by the covid-19 pandemic and their expectations for the Atelier. The interview was conducted on June 14th by Maria Rößler and Stella Jacobs (ITI Germany).