This morning, the Olot City Council and the Institut Ramon Llull presented the 2025 programme for the Faberllull Olot residency. The programme features around fifteen themed residencies covering subjects such as music, translation, film, writing, robotics, and textiles, with a particular focus on emerging talent.

Each year, this residency welcomes over 200 people from around the world. In Olot, they find a space to focus on their work while also exchanging knowledge and gaining new perspectives for their projects. These are prestigious professionals who, during their time in La Garrotxa, engage with the local community through talks, workshops, masterclasses, and discussions—ensuring that the region also benefits from the talent that comes to Faberllull. This exchange with the public is one of this year's key priorities, alongside support for emerging creators.

Josep Quintana, Councillor for Culture and Education at Olot City Council, emphasises: "For us, Faberllull is an integral part of the city. We work on it strategically, proposing residencies and activities with the aim of embedding the project within Olot." Pere Almeda, Director of the Institut Ramon Llull, stated: "Creative residencies have become one of the most effective instruments for international cooperation. The region must have its own system and model for artistic and intellectual residencies. This is a way to contribute directly to the very first stages of creation."

During the presentation, organisers also reviewed the achievements of 2024. Last year, the residency hosted a total of 221 residents, 60% of whom were women. They came from 39 different countries and took part in 54 outreach activities, co-organised with around 30 associations and organisations across Catalonia.

Fifteen Themed Residencies in 2025

The first themed residency of 2025 at Faberllull Olot will focus on music. From 10 to 14 February, eight musicians from Joventuts Musicals de Catalunya will come to Olot to prepare two compositions, which will soon premiere as part of the Joventuts Musicals concert circuit. The young artists will rehearse in the classrooms of Olot’s Municipal School of Music.

Emerging talent will continue to play a key role in this year’s programme. In February, young filmmakers participating in the Screenwriting Residency of the Catalan Film Academy will also come to Faberllull Olot. Selected to develop the script for a feature film, they will receive guidance and mentorship from industry experts.

In March, a residency will focus on analysing the decline in the use of minoritised languages, led by the Linguapax collective. Shortly after, the second edition of the Hackató will take place—a film residency for young talents, where participants will shoot and edit a short film in just 15 days.

In April, Faberllull will explore how culture can become more sustainable and environmentally friendly in a residency organised in collaboration with the Sismògraf Festival and the ICEC. Around the same time, the two artists awarded through the Hivernem programme by FiraTàrrega and the Institut Ramon Llull will also join Faberllull, using their stay to develop ideas for their new street performance.

In May, the residency will once again welcome experts in educational robotics from around the world, providing a space to share and discuss their projects. This residency is organised in collaboration with the Olot-based association Robolot. Following this, a residency dedicated to textiles will take place. As part of the city’s cultural programme, Faberllull will host a residency that celebrates the oral heritage of dressmaking and tailoring practices passed down through generations, as well as the significance of sewing in fostering care and connection with others.

In June, young essayists from Poland and Catalonia will come to Olot as part of an initiative led by PEN Català, offering a critical perspective on society. They will be followed by a residency for translators of the poet Mireia Calafell, who will gather at Faberllull to adapt her work into various languages.

The final residency before the summer will focus on medieval studies, bringing together national and international scholars of the Middle Ages at Faberllull Olot.

Activities will resume in the autumn with a residency for Catalan studies associations and a new edition of the illustration residency, designed to foster collaboration with international publishers.

In addition to themed residencies, Faberllull has also scheduled two periods this year for individual residencies. The first took place from 21 to 27 January, and the second will be held at the end of November.

221 Residents in 2024

Last year, Faberllull hosted a total of 221 residents, 60% of whom were women. They came from 39 different countries. By continent, 179 travelled to Olot from various parts of Europe, 30 from the Americas, 10 from Asia, and 2 from Africa.

In 2024, Faberllull Olot residents took part in 54 outreach activities, which engaged a total of 1,313 participants. These activities included talks, workshops, masterclasses, and even concerts, held primarily in Olot but also in other locations across La Garrotxa, Girona, Vic, and Barcelona. They were co-organised with around 30 associations and organisations, including Espai Cràter, the Alba Women’s Association, the Escola Municipal d’Expressió, the Garrotxa Volcanic Zone Natural Park, the Hospital of Olot, El Galliner in Girona, the ERAM university school, the University of Vic, the University of Barcelona, and the Centre of Contemporary Culture of Barcelona.

Since its creation in September 2016, Faberllull has welcomed 1,389 residents and organised 90 themed residencies.