Hamze Bytyci, born in Prizren / Kosovo in 1982, lives and works in Berlin. In 1989 his family came to Germany with their two sons, another brother was born after they arrived. After intermediate stays in residences for asylum seekers, the family landed in Freiburg in 1992. Bytyci took his first steps as an activist in the Kirchenasyl in Tübingen in 1991. In Freiburg, he founded the Amaro Drom (Our Way) organisation in 2005. After a one-year engagement at the Zurich Theatre 58, he moved to Berlin in 2006, performing and directing at the Ballhaus Naunynstraße and Maxim Gorki Theatre, as well as at smaller theatres. Bytyci began working as an independent theatre and media pedagogue at various schools in Berlin in 2007. In 2010, he founded the Berlin state association Amaro Foro (Our City). In 2011 Bytyci resigned his positions in both organisations and founded RomaTrial e.V., an association with similar aims. He also manages the online Radio Corel and organizes international film summer schools under the label Balkan Onions. In 2012, he developed his own interactive performance format with Hilton Room 437, devoting himself to social and political issues. He began studies in documentary film at the self-organized film school Arche Berlin in 2014. In addition to his work in Berlin, Bytyci performs and directs at smaller theatres across Germany and Switzerland. He has also appeared in some films, including Rosas Höllenfahrt (History of Hell) and Leyla. In April 2018, he co-curated the 1st Roma Biennal, the first self-ofganized Bienal by and with artists from all over Europe.
