Barcelona Arts Summer School (BASS) closes a successful first edition and confirms its return in 2026

The first edition of the Barcelona Arts Summer School (BASS) has come to an end with an overwhelmingly positive outcome. Over the course of two weeks, 150 young talents from around the world took part in an intensive experience of artistic experimentation and interdisciplinary collaboration, with the city of Barcelona as the main stage.

BASS is a joint initiative led by the Escola Superior de Cinema i Audiovisuals de Catalunya (ESCAC), the Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya (ESMUC), and the Institut del Teatre (IT), with the support of the Barcelona City Council and the Government of Catalonia. The project aims to promote artistic excellence and foster new models of creation through collaborative work across disciplines such as film, music, and performing arts.

Over the two weeks, participants — students from ESCAC, ESMUC, and IT, along with a hundred local and international young creators — worked intensively on the development of ten interdisciplinary projects. Each group was guided by a renowned tutor in their field and had access to a wide-ranging program of workshops and masterclasses delivered by prominent figures from the artistic and cultural scene, including Roger Bernat, Sol Picó, Christian Checa, Edi Pou, the collective Cabosanroque, and filmmaker J.A. Bayona.

The ten projects developed throughout the program were publicly presented as part of the BASS Festival, held this past weekend across several iconic venues in the city, such as DHub, La Model, El Fòrum, Torre de les Aigües, Barcelona XRLab, and Montjuïc Castle. These creations, born out of collaboration between participants and leading professionals, highlighted the potential of emerging talent and Barcelona’s capacity to become an international benchmark for contemporary creativity.

During the closing events, it was officially announced that BASS will return in 2026, with the intention of establishing a stable platform to project new talent and support the future development of the most outstanding projects and their authors.

BASS positions itself as a unique platform that combines training, experimentation, and artistic visibility in an environment committed to innovation, cross-disciplinarity, and cultural dialogue. The organization extends its sincere thanks for the institutional commitment and support received, which were essential to the success of this first edition and to the future growth of the initiative.