Scene Stirling Open Call for Creative Digital Commissions
Submissions are now open for the Scene Stirling digital commissions.
Scene Stirling would like to hear from established and emerging creative and cultural practitioners who are based in, or are from, Stirling. We are seeking ambitious, creative talent for our digital commission open call. This commission offers an opportunity to transform your creative practice through digital. We aim to address the impact of digital exclusion for the creative and cultural community in Stirling, caused by the current COVID-19 pandemic. Running over three months, we will support you with our digital expertise to support your professional development, build your networks and help you progress your creative practice. The initiative includes professional skills workshops and digital training by experienced industry trainers, including a matched creative mentor to provide insight along this journey. We are committed to ensuring Stirling’s creatives are supported to build the necessary digital skills they need to continue their practice and learn to develop their digital presence. We aim to help creatives fulfil their professional potential to place Stirling firmly on the cultural and global map where it belongs. We want to find - and then support - a cohort of individuals to showcase their practice within a wider digital context. The result of this digital commission and skills training programme is for our five creative candidates to succeed as a creative professional with digital, and to create a unique piece of work that showcases Stirling’s creative talent. What’s on offer
The commission fee is £1500.00 for each applicant to create their own digital project that adapts or expands their creative practice through digital skills training.
There will be support not only to realise new creative work, but also support the artist, designer or maker to build their digital expertise within their field. This creative work should be able to be presented online. Proposals can include how this would be presented in a physical space, but the work must be able to be presented online without losing impact.
Each candidate also receive an additional funded paid stipend of £300 (£50 per half day workshop) for their digital skills training and will be expected to complete:
○ 6 x creative digital training workshops
○ 3 x Individual 1-2-1 sessions with their matched mentor
○ A documented presentation and filmed interview for Scene Stirling digital platforms
This programme will be delivered with two half day workshops per month over a period of three months from January to March 2021. Our training sessions are yet to be confirmed, but will include professional training led by industry professional and qualified training practitioners.
What we’re looking for
Through this commission and professional development programme, we are looking for those who are: ● Actively looking to shape their creative practice around digital ● Build visibility of their creative practice through digital platforms ● Interested to learn how to build and amplify their digital presence ● Making arts and culture more accessible through digital ● May need additional digital support; e.g. technology, equipment, data and software ● Confidence levels within digitalThis will cover core themes of creative and professional development. Below are some of the examples of learning modules (but are subject to change):
● Strategic Digital Planning for Creatives
● The Fundamental Digital Skills for Creatives
● Content Marketing Through Storytelling
● Creative Problem Solving for Digital Projects
● How to Shape Your Digital Brand
● Understanding the Bigger Picture With Data
● Digital Wellbeing and Accessibility
● Digital Project Management: Tools, Resources and Methods
● Writing Better for the Internet (and How To Get Seen)
● Building a Human Connection in a Digital World
● Creative Business Planning for Digital
● How to Present Your Work or Portfolio Online
● How to Run Successful Digital Events and Workshops
● The Basics to Selling Your Work Online
● Curating Your Digital Presence
● Visual Brand Planning for Social Media
● Digital Goal Setting for Creatives
● Digital Networking and Techniques for Pitching Online
This includes being matched with a suitable mentor who is a creative leader or professional within their field to provide advice and guidance on developing your creative practice. We expect to select up to five candidates through the application process.
People criteria (Requirements)
This artist, designer and/or maker is a creative, hard working person and actively wants to build their digital knowledge and skills. They are able to demonstrate having a commitment to their creative practice, and a desire to understand how to develop and further this practice as part of their professional development. They may know the importance of creative development and digital skills but may not necessarily be sure how to best approach it or adapt their practice in the current circumstances. This person is prepared that they may face difficult work challenges and not everything will come naturally, but we are here to help. They may also have digital experience, but wish to find new ways of working. This may include exploring different opportunities and work environments in how digital can be applied within the creative industries. Essentials
● Ambition to develop their career or practice within a digital context ● Able to articulate the barriers to digital that they are facing and where they might focus their interest ● Basic digital or technology experience is an advantage (but not essential) ● Creative practitioners must be born, live, be based or work or have some kind of connection within the Stirling areas Artists fees
● There will be a commission budget for a new piece of original creative work of £1,500.00 (This will include production costs and artist fees) - your work can be physical but must be able to be photographed or filmed for digital platforms.
● There will be a stipend fee for professional development of £300.00 (for over the course of three months)
● You will be matched with an appropriate mentor within your field
● There may be opportunities for small amounts of additional support for the following on a case by case basis. This may include support with equipment, software, technology, social and/or audience engagement as part of the digital commissions
Key dates
We expect candidates to commit to the following dates for the programme. This is the suggested schedule and key dates for the 2020/21 programme:
● Monday 9th November: Applications open
● Friday 20th November: Open Call Group Discussion (Session 1)
● Wednesday 25th November: Open Call Group Discussion (Session 2)
● Monday 30th November: Applications close (Deadline: 5pm)
● Friday 4th December: Notify successful applicants
● w/c Monday 7th December: 1-2-1 Panel Interviews
● Monday 14th December: Successful applicants notified
● January: Pre-placement kick-off session
● January: Half day workshops x 2 (TBC)
● February: Half day workshops x 2 (TBC)
● March: Half day workshops x 2 (TBC)
● April: Filming of Candidates / Case Studies
● End of April: Final portfolio presentations event / Film case studies
Entry requirements
Scene Stirling is open to creative and cultural practitioners with backgrounds in visual arts, theatre, dance, music, screen, creative industries and craft, who are looking to take their work to the next level through digital. This can include (but is not limited to) a visual artist, illustrator, designer, illustrator, photographer, graphic designer, filmmaker, a writer or maker of poetry, prose or fiction, a playwright, actor or theatre-maker, a comedian, dancer, musician, craft maker or designer. We particularly welcome applications and encourage those who come from under-represented groups, marginalised backgrounds, those with disabilities, less socially mobile and LGTBQ+ backgrounds. ● CV, cover letter and a short statement of proposed creative work which outlines their interest in the commissions, addresses the brief and evidencing the essential criteria above ● A small portfolio of creative work (e.g. up to 3-5 images / video or examples of their work) or an overview of their creative business ● Evidence of experience within their field ● Aspirations to improve their creative practice through digital ● Equal Opportunities form To apply for the Digital Commissions, fill out the below Digital Commissions application form. The deadline is now extended until Tuesday, 1st December.
We estimate that the application should take 45 minutes to complete.
FAQ
If you have any further questions, please contact the team at Scene Stirling with ‘Digital Commissions’ in the email title at hello@scenestirling.com or please call (+44) 07 384 367 544 for more information or to discuss your idea before submitting.
Q1. Can I apply for the Digital Commissions with a partner or collaborator?
You certainly can! The fee can be potentially used to pay another creative or you can split the commission if it works better. You can use the funding grant of £1,500 to work with others as long as it's still creating a new piece of creative work that can be translated for digital.
If additional funds are required, depending on what the scope is for the proposal, we do have a discretionary fund for additional support and needs.
Q2. Will the six training workshops be held online or in person?
At this stage, we predict all our Digital Commission training support will be held remotely via a digital video communications platform such as Zoom or Whereby due to COVID-19 restrictions. We will consider how to keep this as accessible and flexible as possible for those who are successful and join us. For example, we may record some of the training sessions which can be completed in your own time.
Q3. How will I be matched with a mentor?
Depending on your background, we will do our best to match you with someone who can be a friendly listening ear and provide insights on your practice during the project. A mentor can be a brilliant way to reflect and share ideas about your Scene Stirling project. They'll be there to give advice and help you develop an effective plan of action. They may not necessarily be from the same background, but may have the skills and experiences that match your career aspirations.
Q4. Do I need to live or come from Stirlingshire to apply?
You don't have to live or come from Stirling, but we expect to see in your proposal a piece of creative work that has some connection to Stirling. This could be supporting, working or collaborating with the community or local networks in some way. For example, you could be a designer who lives in Glasgow and is planning to host an exhibition in the Stirling area. Or you could be an artist who would like to create a piece of artwork for a hospital or a local business for others to be seen and enjoyed.
Q5. Does my creative project need to be about Stirling?
Definitely not! As long as you can demonstrate some kind of connection to Stirling in your proposal, your work doesn't need to be about Stirling as a place. It just needs to have some kind of connection to the area. This can be as direct (or indirect) as you like. We're looking for unique creative projects and here to support people to tell their stories and showcase Stirlingshire and why it's an inspiring and thriving cultural place to live and work for creative people.
Q6. Do I need a fully formed proposal at this stage now?
In the application, all we expect to see is an outline of your idea for the Digital Commissions to see how we can work together with you. The Digital Commissions is a collaborative process with the Digital Producers and the SceneStirling team. As part of the process, you’ll be undertaking professional development and digital training to help form your chosen creative project.
Q7. Does my work need to be digital?
The Digital Commission fee of £1,500.00 will pay for a new piece of original creative work (this will include production costs and artist fees). Your creative work can be physical but must be suitable and able to be documented, photographed or filmed easily for digital platforms.
Digital Commission Open Sessions
We will be running two open information sessions, hosted by Zoom on the following dates:
Session 1: 12pm, Friday 20th November | Sign up for Session 1
Session 2: 12pm on Wednesday 25th November | Sign up for Session 2
This is an opportunity to find out more about Scene Stirling’s Digital Commissions and ask direct questions about how we can support. We are here to support any queries you may have about the application process and requirements.