Over the weekend, video footage showing revellers inside nightclubs in Paceville caused a stir in online forums, drawing criticism of what appeared to be the flouting of COVID-19 limitations and an apparent lack of enforcement.

Reacting to the footage, festival organiser and Co-founder of Glitch Festival Kevin Ellul draws parallels to similar videos taken in other venues, including restaurants in which social distancing is ignored.  

“It’s very frustrating. The economy in its entirety has taken a hit, but the tourism and entertainment industries have been among those most severely affected,” he laments. Condemning establishments that are not abiding by current health protocols, he states, “this is just going to prolong this difficult period for everyone. In our case, this means that we have to wait even longer to get back to business.” 

“Everyone is eager to go back to normal, but the reality is that this is an extraordinary situation that is not just going to go away overnight,” the festival organiser continues, stressing that governments the world over are struggling to control outbreaks and tweak regulations as they go.  

Asked how he feels about the limitations imposed on entertainment establishments given the current situation, Mr Ellul believes that more can be done, and a one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to regulation does not work. “The country rushed to open up in time for summer, and a lot of mistakes were made, with a very short-sighted vision,” he attests, adding that people were lulled into a false sense of security.  

“Community transmission was very low towards the end of June and this was very encouraging. At that point, we felt it was safe to restart club shows. I feel that the country made two crucial mistakes at that stage: opening up the airport with no testing (and poorly updated safe travel lists) and not capping attendees at mass events. This was just a ticking time bomb,” he says, and the clubbing industry paid the price.

Yet while the industry took the blame, after one of the first clusters in a new wave of infections originated from a mass event, Mr Ellul believes it could have happened anywhere. “Clubs and theatres are now closed, village feasts have been cancelled, weddings postponed, sporting events held behind closed doors, and infection rates are still going up,” he says.

“The situation keeps changing on a daily basis. When we felt it was no longer safe to host club shows, we were one of the first organisations to act and cancel our shows. Most other sensible promoters cancelled their shows just in time as well,” he continues, affirming that, rather than pointing fingers at enforcement, the public can also do more. “Do we really need to be reminded that we’re not following the rules? We’re just fooling ourselves if we don’t. I’m sure the authorities have limitations as well; they cannot be performing spot checks everywhere at one go.” 

Looking towards the future of the cultural sector, Mr Ellul believes that there is urgent need of a plan and assistance. “Government needs to step in to save this important pillar of our society. Entertainment is an important part of our lives. Most countries have set up funds and recovery plans – to date we have none.”

Highlighting the MTA’s recently announced fund of €4.5m for events until April 2021, the festival organiser maintains that while he feels this was done in good faith, the timing and approach will not work. “We need a definite plan that puts the local industry in a good position to re-open when the time is right. A recovery fund that is fairly split is the solution for the months to come,” he recommends.

“The industry is made up of a lot of key players, not just promoters and clubs. Theatre and the arts are also suffering the consequences of being left in the dark. With the Budget around the corner, let’s hope that authorities remember that the economy also depends on creativity. A poor cultural calendar will also have a negative impact on tourism – an industry that the country depends on.”

Meanwhile, asked whether he feels that organisers and club owners should explore alternative options when it comes to events, catering to current restrictions and the ‘new normal’, until a vaccine is made available, Mr Ellul affirms that in his view, such events should be put on hold for the time being. “I understand this means that for some businesses this is not the ideal scenario – everyone has wages, loans and other commitments. This is a very difficult period for everyone, and I’ve seen the community come together and be more understanding, which is one of the few positive repercussions of this pandemic. Maybe in a lot of ways, this was the hard reset our lives needed.”

Despite this, he continues, “we need to be realistic and remind ourselves that the vaccine will not be a miraculous silver bullet that will make COVID-19 go away overnight. This is certainly one of the most challenging times in modern history, however the world has been through several pandemics and survived.”

Championing a phased approach that will gradually lead to businesses re-opening, possibly even under a ‘new normal’, Mr Ellul’s approach is that under the current circumstances, event organisers need to hold on and wait for the vaccine. Once events are restarted, it will be in smaller numbers which will increase gradually. Finally, the introduction of rapid testing will ensure that people are not infected at the point in time, and potentially even lead to events with no capping on attendees, with onsite rapid testing.

“The vaccine is the obvious way forward, helping each country to build the necessary herd immunity and curb the spread of infection. Testing is also crucial, and I believe it will play an important role in restarting events,” he maintains.

Admitting that times remain challenging, and that it can be “hard to accept that something like this has hit the entire world in our lifetime”, Mr Ellul recalls that cancelling Glitch Festival – their main event which was to be held in August – was one of the hardest and most painful decisions. “We had a special fifth year anniversary planned out, and months of work had gone to nothing,” he laments. 

“We are eternally grateful to our loyal fanbase, who understood that we needed their help now more than ever. As soon as we announced that the festival is postponed to 2021, we rolled out a campaign encouraging people to save their ticket for our next edition. The majority of attendees saved their ticket and helped us smoothly transition as best we could into 2021.”

“The entire industry around the world is eagerly anticipating a return, and we are sure it will come, whenever that will be. We just need to remain positive and realistic – sometimes it’s hard to filter out all the negativity on the internet and in the media. We are still learning about this virus so we cannot take any chances, but we will dance again,” he continues, sharing a ray of hope for the industry. “The demand is still there, the enthusiasm we witnessed in July when we briefly reopened was something special. People are still traveling even in this difficult time. These are all encouraging signs, as people regain confidence in travelling and attending concerts and festivals.”