Arts and Culture Trust Funding

This programme has been designed to enhance the continued development of arts and culture in South Africa and provides support for artistic excellence in creative production, professional development and training for the youth in the form of once-off grants up to a maximum of R75,000.

Requests in support of the first phase of the creation of innovative, cutting edge new work will be considered. The grant is aimed at creating time and space for creative professionals to develop a significant work/project or body of work in any one or a combination of the following disciplines:

• Craft

• Dance

• Music

• Theatre

• Literature

• Visual art and new media (limited to research and development-related grants for new work; grants to supplement large production budgets for an existing film project will not be considered)

Applications in this category should address one or more of the following dimensions of the creative development of new work:

• Research and development for new work (living and work-related expenses, including rental, materials and equipment and travel costs);

• Exhibition/production of new work (technical assistance, professional fees, materials and equipment);

• Marketing and publicity (for technical assistance with marketing and publicity, and production of marketing/publicity material and related expenses linked to projects); documentation/archiving of work e.g. assistance with production of a catalogue, DVD, project archive).

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Grants for creative practitioners, arts managers or professional arts organisations for training in any of the following:

• Technical skills related to creative production (especially in new technologies)

• Arts administration and management (including financial and strategic management, office administration and organisational management)

• Arts marketing, publicity and public relations

• Arts fundraising & financial management

• Short-term internships (at professional arts organisations in South Africa)

Applications should clearly specify how the proposed programme will enhance the capacity of the individual to achieve specific career and professional objectives.

YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

Grants for training young people under the age of 25 in any of the following:

• Craft

• Dance

• Music

• Theatre

• Literature

• Visual art

ELIGIBILITY

Preference will be given to new, emerging and established individual artists but smaller arts and culture organisations or small creative businesses/groups are also eligible to apply. Individual artists will ideally have some specialised training in their chosen field though this need not necessarily be at academic institutions and they should also be recognised as a professional artist by peer artists working in the same discipline. Organisations should be staffed by arts professionals who create artistic works, or present them to the South African public.

EXCLUSIONS

• Expenses related to starting a business or capital costs, such as the purchase of office equipment, hardware, software, catering etc.

• International travel

• Film

• Candidates cannot apply for funding for work already completed

• Projects which do not have arts or culture as a core element

• Projects with overall budgets exceeding R500,000

• Building projects (infrastructure)

• Capital or operating costs

WHAT IS THE APPLICATION ASSESSMENT PROCESS?

ACT considers applications for funding throughout the year based on the funds available for disbursement. If a letter of enquiry is successful applicants may then be invited to submit a detailed funding proposal. This process may take up to three months and up to six months for final outcome.

FUNDING CYCLES

Cycle 3 (2010)

Cycle closes: 31 January 2011

Outcome available by: 16 March 2011

Cycle 1 (2011)

Cycle opens: 1 February 2011

Cycle closes: 29 April 2011

Outcome available by: 21 June 2011

Cycle 2 (2011)

Cycle opens: 1 May 2011

Cycle closes: 30 September 2011

Outcome available by: 22 November 2011

Cycle 3 (2010)

Cycle opens: 1 October 2011

Cycle closes: 29 February 2012

Outcome available by: 17 April 2012

If you have not been contacted by the ACT office by the date(s) indicated above your application has not been successful.

Please note that the decision of the ACT Board of Trustees with regard to all applications for funding is final and no further correspondence will be entered into.

http://www.act.org.za/programmes_creative.htm for more