April 24, 2018 – The High Commission of Canada in the United Kingdom, in partnership with the Ontario Arts Council, is organizing a Pitch Your Piece session on Monday, August 20 at the Canada Hub during the Edinburgh Festivals.
This session will provide opportunities for selected Canadian theatre, dance and multidisciplinary projects to pitch their work to international presenters with the view of developing new global partnerships, securing international project support, international representation, touring opportunities, performance engagements, international exposure and premieres.
Application criteria is listed below. 12 applicants will be selected to provide 8-minute pitches (followed by 2 minutes of Q&A) on their new and upcoming projects to an audience of producers, artistic directors, festival curators, presenters and programmers from around the globe.
The High Commission of Canada and Ontario Arts Council will work with partners to ensure that there is a broad professional audience at your pitch. A leaflet will also be produced and include information about your project and organization.
Following the pitch sessions, there will be time slots available for more in-depth meetings should a contact wish to delve deeper into your project, or should you wish to pre-arrange a meeting on the margins of the pitch session. The daytime pitch sessions will be followed by an evening networking reception which will bring together Canadian cultural and creative industry, artists and arts organisations with local and international presenters, funders, producers and the media.
About the Edinburgh Festivals
The month of August sees Edinburgh come alive with five festivals and performances by thousands of theatre companies and artists. Audiences, promoters, producers and media travel to Edinburgh to seek out new work and it is the ideal environment for Canadian projects to receive international exposure and support. In 2017, across the Edinburgh festivals, over 70 Canadian artists and companies performed. The vibrant Canada Hub presented six Canadian theatre and dance companies and played host to two networking events.
Application Requirements (Mandatory)
In order to be considered for a pitching slot, all applicants must provide a summary proposal on a maximum of two sides of 8.5 x 11 in which includes the following required information:
- Your name, email, telephone number and website (if appropriate);
- Names and emails of no more than two people who will be conducting the pitch;
- Company/organization name, address and registration number;
- Video links to past productions and work in progress ;
- Description of proposed project;
- Objective of participation (i.e. develop global partnerships, international representation, touring opportunities, performance engagements etc.); and,
- Two professional references.
The following criteria must be clearly addressed in your application
- l Either the proposed project is in development or complete and will be premiered in the next 18 months or the projects has recently premiered (in the last 3 years).
- l The project represents high quality work that is or will be tour-ready within 18 months.
- l The project already has some backing in place (financial, commissioning, producing, in-kind support).
Additional Information
- l No more than two (2) people may present your project and one of you should be artistically involved in the project.
- l Applications must be from professional organisations that are registered companies and/or registered not-for-profit organizations in Canada.
- l This is about new work/creations. Projects premiered more than 3 years before the pitch will not be considered.
- l All participants must attend the mandatory pitch rehearsal on the morning of August 20 at the Canada Hub.
Selection Process
A maximum of 12 new projects will be selected by a professional panel which includes prominent professional representatives from Canada and the UK.
Applicants will be judged on the mandatory criteria (above).
Additionally, we will be looking for pitches that are:
- l Appropriate for the international marketplace;
- l Work of high artistic excellence;
- l Ready for touring, or will be within 18 months;
- l Representative of the breadth of work from all provinces and territories across Canada;
- l Celebrating Canada’s diversity;
- l Created by Indigenous artists.
All applications must be received by April 30, 2018 to programmes.london@international.gc.ca Late and incomplete applications that do not meet the mandatory requirements will not be considered. All applicants will be notified if their application has been successful by May 30, 2018.
Costs
- l All costs associated with the Pitch your Piece session will be covered including video projector and screen, microphones and a technician.
- l Successful applicants will be responsible for their own travel and accommodation. (You may wish to explore opportunities for funding with the Canada Council for the Arts or your provincial arts council). For Canadian companies which meet certain criteria, CanExport funding may also be available.
Successful applications may have access to the Edinburgh Fringe’s promoter plus programme if they fulfill the required criteria.
For information please visit www.edfringe.com/take-part/arts-industry/arts-industry-area.
We look forward to receiving your application, and making the Canada Hub @ Edinburgh 2018 a great showcase of Canada’s creativity and talent!
For additional information or any queries, please contact: programmes.london@international.gc.ca
