AMAZON SUPPORTS GERMAN ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY WITH 500,000 EUROS

Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Studios have announced a donation of 500,000 euros to support media professionals who work behind the scenes in the German entertainment industry and are affected by the COVID pandemic.

Many TV and film productions, concerts, or other events were postponed or completely stopped as a result of the corona pandemic. This puts a large number of cultural workers in financial difficulties who work away from the limelight and cannot easily compensate for lost wages. To help here, Amazon Prime Video supports Backstage Heroes, a fundraising campaign run by STERN magazine. With this initiative, STERN supports roadies, make-up artists, lighting technicians, sound technicians, etc. who have got into financial need due to the corona lockdown.

The STERN initiative is supported by some of Germany's greatest entertainment artists such as Michael Bully Herbig, Carolin Kebekus, Jan Delay, Klaas Heufer-Umlauf, Veronica Ferres, Helene Fischer, Nico Santos, Udo Lindenberg, and many more. Amazon Prime Video is one of the main donors.

“No series, no shows, no films, and no concerts can take place without the work of the people behind the scenes,” says Philip Pratt, Head of German Amazon Originals at Prime Video. “Many of these backstage heroes are employed on a project basis and were hit hard by the Corona crisis, which stopped almost all artistic events. These are difficult and challenging times and we are aware of the plight of many people. While we are preparing for the start of production of some Amazon Original series in Germany and Europe, we are still committed to supporting the creative community in this crisis."

The 500,000 euro donation from Amazon Prime Video in Germany is part of a sum of six million US dollars that was announced this year to support the creative community in TV and film in Europe during the corona pandemic. Donations that have already been published in this context include a donation of one million euros for the Corona emergency fund, Scena Unita, in Italy.

Since 2016, Amazon Studios has launched more than 20 Originals in Europe, including the much-anticipated Amazon Original series "Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo" and the comedy show "LOL - Laughing Out Loud" with host Michael Bully Herbig, which starts in the spring. Other German original series from Amazon Studios are "Deutschland89", "Pastewka", "Bibi & Tina", "BEAT" and "You Are Wanted".