What potential do games offer for Thuringia as a media location – and how can we exploit it? That was the topic of Panel 5 of our MENT MasterClasses. The three panellists, Gianluca Pandolfo (Bauhaus Gamesfabrik), Jonas Heinke (PlayInsight Studios) and Nadja Frank (Games & XR Mitteldeutschland e.V.), provided many exciting insights and suggestions. 

Let's first take a look at the potential. Jonas pointed to the maximum interdisciplinarity of the industry: creating a game requires various experts, e.g. for music, animation, the store and so on. Anyone can participate in a game. Nadja explained that the survival rate of start-ups in the games sector is three times higher than in other industries. In addition, new media have a higher value creation potential than films, for example. For Gianluca, the opportunities to train and retain motivated professionals in Thuringia are also a priority. According to him, there are many creative minds who would like to stay in the region. However, due to a lack of jobs and start-up prospects, most of them moved to Berlin, Munich or Leipzig after completing their studies.

Technical support, understanding & willingness 

This brings us to the requirements. Here, the three panelists spoke out in favour of technical support for founders in the games sector, which could also begin at universities. In addition to financial support, help is needed above all in technical matters, such as ‘How do I find a tax advisor for my games company?’ and basic entrepreneurial skills. In addition, there needs to be an understanding and willingness on the part of politicians and economic development agencies to support games and the industry. 

Highlighting existing strengths

Overall, however, our panellists see a lot of good things already in place in Thuringia – but so far these have not been sufficiently visible. Specific suggestions from the panel included supporting the internationalisation of the industry from a Thuringian perspective and making greater use of rural areas. The latter could be implemented, for example, through real-world laboratories as places of democracy and encounter in rural areas, where games could be a ‘vehicle’. The conclusion of our panel: ‘Actually, everything is there, you just have to bundle it now.’

The MENT MasterClasses took place for the first time in 2025 as part of our Media BarCamp. In six panels, industry experts exchanged views on the topics of our media policy position paper. You can find out more about the other panels in the newsroom.