Published: 30 May 2018
£650,000 of Creative Scotland Open Project Funding has been awarded to 35 recipients, including individual artists, musicians, writers, theatre makers, festivals and organisations working across the arts, screen and creative industries.
A cross section of projects and individuals receiving funding in April 2018 includes:
Children’s Classic Concerts (CCC) have received funding towards their 2018-19 season. CCC provides entertaining and accessible first experiences of classical music for children and families in communities across Scotland.
Trad band The Outside Track, Scottish Jazz-fusion group Graham Costello’s STRATA and composer Michael John McCarthy have all received funding towards new material.
The Isle of Gigha Music Festival has received funding towards this year’s programme which will include; Ross Ainslie, Ali Hutton, Jenn Butterworth and Laura-Beth Salter.
The Cumnock Tryst classical music festival, 4–7 October 2018 has received funding towards the world premiere performance of a major new work by festival founder Sir James MacMillan CBE, commissioned by 14-18 NOW, to coincide with the centenary of the World War I Armistice at this year’s festival. The new work will be performed by the Tryst's Festival Chorus, Dalmellington Band, the Edinburgh Quartet plus double bass, and the international tenor recitalist, Ian Bostridge.
We are delighted to be able to support such a range of creative practice in communities across Scotland, increasing access to cultural activity for people of all backgrounds- Iain Munro, Deputy CEO, Creative Scotland
On receiving funding Graham Costello said: “My band STRATA have been patiently building to recording this album for nearly two years. We knew we wanted to do it right, and with support from Creative Scotland we can do just that - record our music in the best possible manner, and give it a strong release. Our music and general ethos as a band aims to fuse the jazz scene with the independent scene, bringing these two vibrant communities together, and the fact that Creative Scotland are helping to support this goal just blows my mind!”
Uist-based Ceòlas Uibhist have received funding towards their 2018 activity offering a programme of Gaelic Arts events that will be delivered throughout the year to promote and celebrate Gaelic language, music and dance, and support visiting events and artists to the island.
Eilean Eisdeal have received funding towards the 2018 Arts Programme at Easdale Island’s Community Hall.
Artist collective Recollective have received funding to create a publication charting untold stories of Glasgow’s Barrowland Ballroom. The Barrowland: Music, Memory, History (working title) will feature photography, creative writing, graphic art and multimedia brought together in collaboration with the venue, the east end community that surrounds it, gig-goers, dancers and musicians.
Poet Victoria McNulty has received funding to embark on a five-date pilot tour of solo theatre show Confessionals to Glasgow, Edinburgh, Inverness, Belfast and London. Combining contemporary spoken word and traditional theatre Confessionals is a coming of age character piece featuring music from Abi Normal; produced by Sonnet Youth (Kevin Gilday and Cat Hepburn) in partnership with the Govanhill Baths Community Trust.
The Cromarty and Resolis Film Society have received funding towards the Cromarty Film Festival, 30 November-2 December 2018.
Africa in Motion (AiM), 26 October - 4 November 2018 have received funding towards its programme. Scotland's annual African film festival features film screenings and events, making it possible for Scottish audiences to engage with African stories and industry professionals from the continent.
The Cromarty and Resolis Film Society said: “We are delighted to have been awarded these funds and extremely grateful to Creative Scotland for their support – we are busy planning for the Festival which is looking pretty damn stellar, and can’t wait to welcome everyone to the friendliest film festival (30 Nov, 1-2 Dec 2018).”
In an award made towards digital, Scots Radio will use their funding to continue its Scots-Language radio series, whilst developing and fully launching a new video element. The monthly radio programme features arts coverage, cultural politics and current affairs, engaging with – and encouraging content from - Scots-speaking communities across Scotland and beyond.
Among the theatre awards, The Envelope Room Designers Network has received funding towards its work supporting, promoting and connecting stage designers (including set, costume, lighting and video designers) based in Scotland.
Nutshell Theatre, Tromolo Productions, Eilidh MacAskill and Rosana Cade have received funding towards new works.
Dance artist Merav Israel has received funding to create a new dance film, Aluma.
Choreographer Neil Callaghan has received an award towards Phenomena, a new touring project.
Choreographer Jack Webb will use his award to develop 79 Spaces, a new intergenerational dance performance for four women with music and text from Aidan Moffat.
Choreographer Jack Webb said: “I am delighted to have been awarded funding to develop this new intergenerational work for four women exploring universal and urgent subjects of care, community, support, loneliness and the importance of people and our need for each other to thrive. It is a wonderful opportunity to develop my practice as well as making a contribution to Scotland's rich and innovative artistic landscape”.
Visual artists Tako Taal, Louise Barrington, Ilana Halperin, Sam Ainsley and performance artist Gordon Douglas have received funding to research and develop new works.
Iain Munro, Deputy CEO at Creative Scotland said: “We are delighted to be able to support such a range of creative practice in communities across Scotland, increasing access to cultural activity for people of all backgrounds. Open Project Funding, with support from The National Lottery, enables our artists to develop their creative practice, enriching Scotland’s reputation as a distinctive creative nation.
“While, as always, there are many more good applications than we have the funds to support, these latest awards do provide invaluable support to the successful applicants and demonstrates what is possible through Open Project Funding. We look forward to seeing their work develop as a result.”
Open Project Funding is available to a wide range of organisations and individuals working across Scotland in the arts, screen and creative industries. It supports a broad spectrum of activity including creative and professional development, research and development, production, small capital requirements, touring and collaborations, festivals, arts programming, audience development, etc. A full list of activities supported through this route is set out in the Open Project Funding application guidance. Support is available for projects of different scale and duration with the maximum period of award being set at 2 years. Awards are made in the range £1,000 to £100,000 (or up to £150,000 by exception).
Details of the Open Project Fund and all other Creative Scotland funding can be found on our website at creativescotland.com/funding/funding-programmes/open-project-funding
Please note the funding awards listed above remain offers of funding until such time as all terms and conditions have been formally accepted and fulfilled by the award recipient. If an award recipient fails to accept any offer, the funding award will be withdrawn and credited to future Open Project Funding Panels.
Creative Scotland is the public body that supports the arts, screen and creative industries across all parts of Scotland on behalf of everyone who lives, works or visits here. We enable people and organisations to work in and experience the arts, screen and creative industries in Scotland by helping others to develop great ideas and bring them to life. We distribute funding provided by the Scottish Government and the National Lottery. For further information about Creative Scotland please visit creativescotland.com. Follow us @creativescots and facebook.com/CreativeScotland
The arts, screen and creative industries in Scotland deliver real benefits and make a real difference to all our lives regardless of who we are or where we live. Film, theatre, literature, dance, music, visual art, video games, craft, and the commercial creative industries all contribute to a flourishing society, to our education and learning and to our skills, jobs and economy.
Public funding for the arts, screen and creative industries, through both the Scottish Government and through the National Lottery, helps make life better in Scotland - better for us all as individuals, as communities and as a nation.
As we say in our 10-year plan Unlocking Potential, Embracing Ambition we want Scotland to be a place where the arts, screen and creative industries are valued and recognised, where artists and creative people can flourish and thrive, and where everyone, everywhere, is interested and curious about creativity.
Eilidh Walker, Media Relations & PR Assistant
Creative Scotland
E: eilidh.walker@creativescotland.com
T: +44 (0) 131 523 0019
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