All There Is To Know About Helmut Barz

My Life – The Cliff Notes Version

Born in Braunschweig; grew up in St. Peter-Ording on the North Sea coast; lived in Berlin, Cape Town, and New York City; now residing in Offenbach; degrees in theater studies and directing; freelancing in corporate communications since the year 2000: That’s the Cliff Notes version of my life.

Oh yes, in between, I’ve lived my life, fallen in love, had my heart broken, met people, good and bad, and gone through the usual ups and downs of human existence. And er I forget: I have written and published several books I am particularly proud of, including the mystery series about Frankfurt’s most chaotic investigator Katharina Klein and “Brumm!”, a tribute to the panda in all of us.

My Mission Possible

I love language and writing. I love storytelling – on paper, on stage, online, or through moving images. And I love learning – the world is my “Sesame Street for adults.” So, it’s no wonder I forged my profession from these passions – strategist, copywriter, director, voice actor, and translator for corporate communications.

Professional Experience

  • Customer and market research; strategy; campaign and project planning; development of ideas and concepts; copywriting; leadership in creative processes; production and project management
  • Work for individual products as well as product lines and brands
  • Extensive experience (more than 300 projects) in a variety of media, including print, online, interactive, multimedia, film, but also PR, events, corporate art and viral media
  • Long-term working partnerships with numerous businesses and agencies
  • Projects in German and English

  • English to German translations for corporate communications (print media, online media, internal communications)
  • Experience in translating manuals and tutorials for IT products
  • Translation of some of my writing into English for bilingual projects (usually in cooperation with an editor)

  • Published seven novels, including the crime series about Frankfurt detective Katharina Klein, which was well received by audiences and critics alike
  • Four plays and one opera libretto produced at German theaters
  • Strong interest and constant expansion of my storytelling skills in various media
  • Numerous projects for various media in progress

University Degrees

  • At the University of Music and Performing Arts, Frankfurt am Main, Diploma 1998 (final grade: very good).
  • Courses in directing, acting, voice and body work, stage design, costume, theater history, psychology, pedagogy, rhetoric
  • Studies with Hans Hollmann, Daniel Karasek, Elke Lang and others
  • Final production: Jean-Paul Sartre: “No Exit” at the Stadttheater Gießen (1998)
  • Final thesis: “Walter Hasenclever: The Son. In defense of an unplayable play.”

  • At the Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Diploma 1995 (final grade: very good).
  • Courses in theater history, cultural theory, acting, stagecraft, dance, German, English, French and Russian literature, art history, music theory, law and economics
  • Studies with Helga Finter, Gabriele Brandstätter, Patrice Pavis, Robert Wilson, Eugenio Barba, Christian Ofenbauer and others
  • Final Thesis: “Time Bandits, Brazil, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. Intertextual and Narrative Strategies in Terry Gilliam’s ‘Trilogy of the Ages of Man'”

Skills

  • Experience with strategy, marketing and creative work in industries as diverse as IT, pharmaceuticals, finance, tourism, building materials, engineering and human resources services
  • in-depth understanding of B2B processes and communications
  • Extensive experience and knowledge in communicating on current and future IT topics: Blockchain, NFT, Cloud, Social Business, Analytics and Big Data – I know what the terms mean, the technology behind them and how they impact business processes positively and negatively

  • German (native)
  • English (business fluent)
  • Latin (in case you always wanted to know what “Lorem Ipsum” means)

  • Office: Excellent knowledge of Microsoft Office, Open Office, Final Draft, Adobe Acrobat.
  • Web design: Good knowledge of Adobe Dreamweaver and Adobe Muse, experience with HTML and CMS (Joomla, WordPress – setup and usage)
  • Multimedia: Good knowledge in Adobe Creative Suite
  • Image editing: Good knowledge of Adobe Photoshop
  • Graphic design: Good knowledge of Adobe Indesign, Adobe Illustrator
  • Sound/Video: Good knowledge of Adobe Premiere, Adobe After Effects, and Adobe Audition.

  • Experience and knowledge in stage tech (lighting, sound)
  • Experience and knowledge in recording technology (video/sound)

  • Experience and training in acting/speaking.
  • I am also an acceptable cook, although inclined to experiment.

My CV

Would you like to keep me in mind – or in your records? Then download my CV here.

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