The Valletta Cultural Agency sustains and strengthens the capital city’s vibrant cultural life through the creation of an annual programme of creative events developed in collaboration with artists and other Public Cultural Organisations.
A legacy of the Valletta 2018 Foundation, the VCA upholds standards of excellence in the coordination and organization of artistic and cultural events in the city. The Agency aims to collaborate with established and emerging artists, creatives and cultural practitioners whilst working towards greater participation by communities and developing new audiences.
Established in March 2019, the VCA is building its Cultural Programme on 5 core values, which are:
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-ABILITY
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Explore and contribute towards liveability, accessibility and sustainability within Valletta for residents, workers and visitors alike through art and culture, with a focus on the protection, rediscovery and enhancement of common spaces by encouraging users to requalify and reimagine their use.
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TRANS/FORM
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Rethink contemporary and collective identities through transformative experiences and collaborations, turning individuals and communities from audiences into active participants.
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DIalogue
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Chart needs and wants through dialogue and debate that would, in turn, offer a map into potential futures and a better understanding of current realities from the eyes of a varied public.
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INNOVATE
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Develop and implement innovative artistic and creative initiatives that experiment with new practices, technologies, space-time correlations, with a solid grounding in research and documentation.
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INHERIT
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Value and support local traditions as an important part of the contemporary social fabric and as a platform and inspiration for artistic and creative initiatives.
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The Valletta Cultural Agency is seeking to commission individuals/groups/collectives/organisations to create small to medium scale music productions of high artistic quality, as part of its 2019 Cultural Programme, each based on/inspired by one or more of its core values.
Deadline for submissions: 6th June 2019
The selected applicant/s will build an innovative music event around one or more values of the Agency. The cost of these project/s must not exceed 7,000EUR excl. 18% VAT. The project/s will form part of the Valletta Cultural Agency’s Cultural Programme, receive marketing and publicity around the commission as well as support from the Agency’s Programming and Production team to realise the idea.
We’re interested in commissioning...
Musical events which:
- are completely new productions or original and innovative iterations of existing work;
- are performed for the first time in Valletta as a stand-alone event in 2019;
- through their concept/presentation, embody one or more of the values of the Agency at its core;
- are inspired by Valletta, past, present and/or future; and
- are environmentally conscious at the production stage.
Presented by…
An individual/group/artist/collective/organization where the main applicant:
- is at least 18 years of age at the time of application;
- is an early to mid-career individual artist with less than 6 years’ experience working in the field, or a group/collective/organization which has been operating for less than 4 years in the field; and
- has a VAT number.
Publicly-funded organisations are not eligible to apply for this call.
Including one or more of the following will be considered added value:
- local and/or international artistic collaboration/s;
- involving emerging creative practitioners/artists; and
- featuring an interpretation of the concept of accessibility in its concept/presentation.
HOW TO APPLY
Fill in the application form available on this link and attach:
- a copy of ID card of the main applicant and, if applicable, an NGO/VO certificate;
- a 50-word bio of each artist involved;
- a CV and artistic portfolio of applicant and/or the group/collective/organisation, if applicable;
- a provisional technical rider;
- in case of the use of an existing copyrighted work, in whole or in part, a confirmation of the license holder that the project may take place and/or a quote for the licensing fee; and
- any other document supporting the artistic proposal.
Fill in the Budget Breakdown template to include:
- Artist fees and Producer fees;
- Rental of venue and/or venue set up in case of the outdoor site (stage and seating if required);
- Technical equipment, including sound and light, if required;
- Accommodation and travel for international artists, if required; and
- Production costs including costumes, props, local transport, freight, licensing fees.
As the main producer, the applicant will be responsible to source a Health and Safety Assessment for the event by a qualified assessor and to implement the recommended Health and Safety measures during the event (such as first aid personnel).
The total cost of these elements should not exceed 7,000EUR excl. 18% VAT.
The Agency will provide:
- Power and barriers during production week, in case of outdoor venue;
- Security and ushering on the day of the performance/s for a maximum of 3 days, if necessary;
- Mobile toilets in case of outdoor venue;
- Production guidance and support;
- Event Public Liability Insurance;
- Permits in Valletta; and
- All marketing and communication.
The application form is available on this link. Submit the application form and all attachments via email with the subject title “MusiCity” to opencalls@vca.gov.mt by the 6th June 2019. Late applications will not be considered.
For any queries, please send us an email on opencalls@vca.gov.mt by 12 pm on 31st May 2019.
EVALUATION AND T&Cs
Evaluation Criteria
We are looking for proposals that are of high quality, engaging and collaborative. A minimum of 65 points must be obtained for a proposal to be considered eligible.
Concept and Collaboration (55 points)
- Are the artistic vision, aims of the project and anticipated outcomes innovative and of high artistic quality?
- How strong will the experiential impact of the project be on its public?
- How well does the project engage with Valletta?
- How well does the project reflect one or more of the values of the Cultural Programme of the Agency: -ABILITY, TRANS/FORM, DIalogue, INNOVATE or INHERIT?
Production and Financial (35 points)
- Is there a clear and realistic breakdown of budget and expenditure?
- Has the applicant considered logistical and production issues in the creation of the proposal?
- Does the proposal show that the necessary skills and expertise are in place to effectively produce the event?
- What measures to reduce environmental impact and improve accessibility have been included in the proposal?
Added Value (10 points)
- Is the project engaging young/emerging artists/collaborators within the art/culture field?
- Does the project have an international dimension?
Terms and Conditions
- Proposals must fulfil all obligations of the application to be considered eligible.
- Proposals will be evaluated in accordance with the Evaluation Criteria specified in this call by an evaluation panel against the timeframes indicated.
- The maximum budget allocated to each selected project will be of 7,000EUR excl. 18% VAT but inclusive of any other taxes or charges. The Sum will be disbursed in tranches to the selected applicant/Organisation as the sole beneficiary, with the final percentage being paid upon satisfactory completion of the project and approval of reports (due not later than 1 month after the event).
- Once selected, the applicant will enter into a Contract for Service with the Agency.
- All marketing and communications material and the campaign will be created, managed and funded separately and directly by the Valletta Cultural Agency.
- Any ticketing initiatives will be managed by the Valletta Cultural Agency according to the nature of the proposal. Income resulting from ticketing will remain with the Agency.
- The Agency reserves the right not to select proposals should none of the submissions satisfy the set criteria.
Timeframes
- Call opens on 6th May
- Call closes on 6th June
- The call will be evaluated in the first week of June 2019.
- The selected applicant/s will be notified by no later than 14th June 2019.
- Live event: between 1st July and 30th December 2019.
