Viera Pirker (*1977) is Professor of Religious Education and Media Didactics at Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, where she is responsible for the Master’s programme “Religion – Media – Interculturality”. She studied Catholic Theology and Jewish Thought in Tübingen and Jerusalem, received her doctorate for a dissertation on concepts of identity in pastoral care, and has held academic positions at Vienna and Gießen. As a member of the International Research Group “Film and Theology”, her recent edited volumes focus on ageing in film (Abschiede und Aufbrüche) and representations of Christianity in contemporary cinema (Kirche, Kult und Krise). Her research addresses religion on image-based social media platforms (Religion auf Instagram). She has published extensively on film, religion, and the arts, curated contemporary art exhibition programmes, and integrates artistic perspectives into research and teaching, including film events that engage at the intersection of religious education and scholarship.
Theologian
Country of origin
Germany
Festivals
Current issues
Peter Paul Huth comments favourably on the 2026 Venice Film Festival awards ceremony, highlighting in particular the Golden Lion winner, “Kvinde Ukendt” (Unknown Woman) by May el-Toukhy, and “Un bon petit soldat” by Stéphane Brizé, which won the award for Best Screenplay and the INTERFILM Jury Prize.
Alex Gibney’s documentary *Musk* portrays a ‘hero of capitalism’, whilst Ilya Khrzhanovsky’s *DAU* evokes the victims of Stalinism.
Events
16.02.2025
Haus der EKD, Charlottenstraße 53/54, 10117 Berlin