Short Cut: Opportunity Listings in August 2019

Ritual in Transfigured Time by Maya Deren, 1946
Each month LUX Scotland shares opportunities for artists, filmmakers, curators, and other arts professionals working in the moving image sector. If you have an opportunity to share with us, please email scotland [at] lux​.org​.uk.

UK – China Connections through Culture Grants

Running for nearly a decade, Connections through Culture is a long-term programme to develop exciting cultural collaborations between artists and arts organisations, supporting long-lasting relationships between China and the UK. The programme offers support, information, advice, networking opportunities and development grants to artists and arts organisations in China and the UK.

Next deadline: 4 August

BFI Future Film Festival

Invites are open to filmmakers to submit their work to the BFI Future Film Festival, the British Film Institute’s annual film festival for young people (16 – 25), held at the BFI Southbank in London. This year there is up to £15,000 worth of prizes including money to support film production and career development.

Deadline: 4 August

BFMAF LUX Project Boot Camp 2019, Berwick Film and Media Arts Festival, Berwick upon Tweed

BFMAF 2019 will once again become a platform and case study for a three-day workshop led by Benjamin Cook, Director of LUX, for artists seeking to develop their new moving image project. Working within an informal and mutually supportive small group environment, participants will bring a short project proposal to be workshopped over the three days. The workshop will explore how to articulate new ideas, written and verbal presentation skills, placing projects and building partnerships, fundraising, exhibition and distribution strategies. Using their own projects as case studies, participants will discuss and develop skills that can be applied within both art and film contexts, including preparing funding, residency and production award applications as well as pitching at development markets, film festivals and other competitive contexts.

Deadline: 5 August

Opportunity to present moving image works at OPEN: SSA + VAS, Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh

The Society of Scottish Artists in collaboration with CutLog Artists Moving Image announce a unique opportunity for artists to present moving image works. With a shared vision to provide an accessible platform for artist moving image, the SSA and CutLog invite artists from across the world to enter their work to be considered for inclusion in a showcase screening as part of the SSA’s Annual Exhibition at the Royal Scottish Academy in Edinburgh from 22 December 2019 – 30 January 2020.

Deadline: 5 August

Commission Opportunity for short films from cross-cultural teams collaborating to explore LGBTQ+ stories

The pilot programme #MOREFilms4Freedom aims to find and facilitate the production of urgent, creative collaborations that explore LGBTQ+ intersectionality, global human rights and diaspora identity. It builds on our #FiveFilms4Freedom digital campaign, which originated in 2015 as a partnership between BFI Flare: London LGBTQ+ Film Festival and the British Council, and which has generated views from nearly 14 million people in 202 countries and principalities. In previous editions of the campaign, they found a gap in projects and stories originating in countries within the African continent and the Middle East. This year, we’re looking to commission new projects that will have at their heart an element of collaboration between UK-based LGBTQ+ identified filmmakers and filmmakers/​storytellers from countries in these regions.

Deadline: 6 August

Job Opportunity: Head of Programme, FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology), Liverpool

The purpose of the post is to manage all aspects of FACT’s Artistic Programme, in its five distinct yet interrelated strands: Exhibitions, Learning, Public Programme (including film, talks, tours, workshops), Talent Development, and Research. The post holder will lead and motivate FACT’s high-performing Programme team, working collaboratively to develop and deliver an ambitious interdisciplinary programme that sits at the crossroads between art and technology, and responds to contemporary developments in society, technology and science.

Deadline: 11 August

Opportunity: Berwick Film and Media Arts Festival 2019 Writer in Residence

Now in its third year, the residency offers a writer the opportunity to immerse themselves in the festival and the platform to respond in a creative and critical manner. The Writer in Residence opportunity includes a fee of £250, accommodation for 4 nights during the Festival (Thursday 19 – Sunday 22 September 2019) and return travel within the UK. The written outcome of the residency is open and will be developed in collaboration with the Berwick Film & Media Arts Festival’s team. BFMAF encourage applicants to explore how they would like to approach the Festival and take advantage of the programme. The final text will be published online. The potential for performance or reading could also be discussed with the chosen writer.

Deadline: 12 August

Job Opportunity: Curator at The Common Guild, Glasgow

The Common Guild is seeking to appoint a Curator, who will work closely with the Director on the development and production of our programme of projects, events, exhibitions and publications. This is a permanent, full-time job with a small team and a key post in the organisation. Applicants will be enthusiastic, knowledgeable and experienced in exhibition-making and working with artists, with excellent written and oral communication skills and a clear commitment to the visual arts.

Deadline: 12 August

Job Opportunity: Curator, Ikon Gallery, Birmingham

Ikon seeks to appoint a Curator to plan and create innovative exhibitions and other projects that realise Ikon’s artistic policy, reflect the range of contemporary international art practice and enhance Ikon’s profile. Candidates must have relevant experience within a contemporary visual arts environment. £30,000 per annum. Permanent, full time.

Deadline: 19 August

Submissions open for Glasgow Film Festival 2020

GFF are currently on the lookout for fiction, documentary, animation and experimental features to be included in our 2020 programme. Films selected through the submission process have played to enthusiastic crowds at Glasgow over the years and gone on to secure wider distribution.

Early bird deadline: 23 August

Call for Applications for i‑Portunus:

Funding to support European cross-border collaborations, residencies, professional development and presentations. Between April and September 2019, the pilot project i‑Portunus will issue three Calls for Applications, providing support for international mobilities of artists active in the fields of the performing or visual arts (except music) and residing in a Creative Europe country. These mobilities must have a specific and well-defined objective, such as to develop an international collaboration, to engage in a production-oriented residency or in professional development, to present work in another country or to develop projects with local communities in the destination country.

Deadline: 5 September

Open Call for UK based alternative MFA School of the Damned

School of the Damned (SOTD) is a UK based Alt MFA for developing creative practice in a supportive group. Re-forming on an annual basis, each cohort has the opportunity and responsibility to define and organise the agenda of the school. As SOTD was formed in reaction to the increasing monetisation of Higher Education in the UK, there are no tuition fees. An Alt MFA does not follow the traditions and curriculums of formal education. Instead, it is an educational platform which is self-motivated and self-organised by its students. SOTD is a non-hierarchical structure that requires a level of commitment and responsibility.

Deadline: 7 September

Call for Applications: Jerwood Bursaries research and development for artists

Jerwood Bursaries provide funding to help artists explore and develop the next steps of their career, whether through supporting skills and knowledge development and/​or supporting the first stage development of a new idea. They are supporting artists to pursue their interests independently and on their own terms.

Deadline: 7 October

Call for Submissions: Alchemy Moving Image Festival 2020, Hawick, Scottish Borders

Alchemy Film & Arts was founded in 2010, and celebrates the creative, innovative and thought-provoking in experimental film and artists’ moving image. Their aim is to reach and engage with both national and international filmmakers and moving-image artists, and to bring their work to the attention of the widest possible audience, working to the benefit of the Scottish Borders and its unique communities.

Deadline: 15 December

MA Artists’ Film and Moving Image, Goldsmiths, London

This twelve-month, intensively taught practice-based Masters is aimed at artists and graduates working within the field of artists’ film and moving image who wish to develop their practice and professional networks with the support of Goldsmiths’ Art Department and its uniquely high concentration of accomplished artist filmmakers. The programme is centred on the individual experience and knowledge that each student brings, developing them as artists who want to innovate in the expanding field of moving image. Students are challenged to synthesise the knowledge and understanding gained from its bespoke curriculum linking practice, theory and professional development into a reflective, informed and decisive approach to the intellectual, aesthetic, social and technical processes necessary to bring their individual artistic project in moving image or related media from idea to realisation.

Deadline: January & April 2020

Funding: ScreenSkills bursaries

ScreenSkills bursaries are designed to provide financial assistance to those looking to enter, progress in, return to, or transfer into the screen industries. You can apply for money to pay for most things that relate to training, work and work-related activities, including: training fees, accommodation, care, disability access costs, equipment, software, travel and (for people already working in the industry) driving lessons. But bursaries cannot pay fees relating to undergraduate or postgraduate study or things that should be paid for by an employer.

Deadline: rolling until 31 March 2020

Opportunity to take over Generator Projects with short term exhibition, Dundee

Take Over slots are an opportunity for Generator members to take charge of the galleries and stage short exhibitions and events. This is a chance to use the galleries without the usual rigmaroles of the curatorial process, just the thing if you need a public space to test an exhibition idea.

Deadline: rolling

The Journal of Embodied Research invites video article submissions

Journal of Embodied Research solicits video articles of between 10 and 20 minutes that document and share the results of research projects in which embodied practice is an essential part of the methodology. There are no annual deadlines and video articles are published on a rolling basis throughout the year. Informal inquiries to JER can be made by emailing the journal editor at any time. Formal submissions should be made electronically through this website.

Deadline: ongoing

Funding Opportunity: Film Hub Scotland: Pitch Pots

Pitch Pots are a simple way for you to access additional support to enhance new or existing one-off projects and screenings of independent British and specialised film. Film Hub Scotland will prioritise projects that promote diversity and increase inclusion, engage young people and/​or celebrate screen heritage. The ambition for the fund is that members will be able to create impactful, one-off events to enhance their programme, or to deliver special activities tied to local, Scotland and/​or UK events and initiatives. Support is available for projects taking place from April 2019 – March 2020. Projects must be completed by 31 March 2020.

Deadline: ongoing

MA Experimental Film, Kingston University, London

This course has been designed to offer a genuinely creative methodology and understanding of current and future potential for film experimentation in artists’ moving image. This places the programme at the forefront of postgraduate studies exploring moving image in its most creative form. The course offers a range of input from staff in filmmaking and will enable you to develop a major body of practical work created within the context of a critical understanding of contemporary experimental film theory. The curriculum offers three distinct areas of critical and practical inquiry options, supported by a specialised seminar/​lectures series: artists’ moving image; independent film; and the materiality of film. You will undertake self-initiated research supported by taught modules and an experienced group of research-active staff and will explore the critical and historical frameworks within which experimental film work can be understood and conceptualised.

Deadline: ongoing

MRes Art: Moving Image, Central Saint Martins, London

And what insights can a study of artists’ moving image offer us for understanding the diverse practices that now fill art spaces internationally as well as in the UK? A unique association between LUX and Central Saint Martins has created a research-led Masters degree to address these questions. The course is focused on nurturing a discursive culture around moving image art which offers a number of unique features for students interested in studying and working in the field of artists’ moving image. MRes Art: Moving Image offers the opportunity of acquiring unique insight and depth into the subject of artists’ moving image culture, through lectures, seminars and screenings with acknowledged scholars, artists and specialists in the field. This course is part of the Art Programme. You are expected to commit 30 hours per week to your studies; your taught input will normally be scheduled over a maximum of two to three days per week during term time.

Deadline: ongoing

Sundance Institute Documentary Fund

The Documentary Film Program’s (DFP) mandate is to focus on the values of Art, Reach, and Change. They accomplish these by encouraging experimentation and excellence in form, championing under-represented voices, and supporting the social and creative impact of this work upon release. Recently supported films include Always in Season, American Factory, The Edge of Democracy, Hale County This Morning, This Evening, Minding the Gap, Of Fathers and Sons, and One Child Nation. Please note: DFP do not fund NGO, or educational films. DFP tend not to fund purely historical or biographical films unless they show clear contemporary relevance or innovation in form.

Deadline: rolling

British Council Film: Shorts Support Scheme

British Council Film is committed to showcasing new UK film talent to audiences around the world and has a long tradition of supporting new and emerging filmmaking talent. British Council Film’s Short Support Scheme exists to support UK-based filmmakers to show their work internationally.

Deadline: ongoing