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The following is issued on behalf of the Advisory Committee on Arts Development:
The Advisory Committee on Arts Development (ACAD) today (November 11) launched the third-round funding exercise of the Arts Capacity Development Funding Scheme (ACDFS). The ACDFS seeks to provide funding support for innovative and impactful proposals that can contribute to the objectives of capacity development of arts practitioners, arts groups, art forms and/or the arts sector; programme/contents development; audience building; and arts education.
Applicants are encouraged to put forward proposals which can contribute to capacity development in a wider scope, such as proposals aiming to enhance multi-faceted capacities (including creativity, human resources and organisational capabilities); proposals seeking to develop the capacity of specific art form(s) and/or the arts sector as a whole in addition to building the applicants' capacity; proposals encompassing documentation, research, criticism, publication and/or other elements conducive to the sustainable development of the arts; proposals pioneering new frontiers in arts practices and related critical reflection; and proposals striving for artistic excellence and innovation in respect of programme/contents development. While the target beneficiaries of the ACDFS are established arts practitioners/arts groups, the ACAD also welcomes proposals which encompass training opportunities/elements to nurture young artists and/or arts administrators.
The third-round funding exercise of the ACDFS is open for application for two months from November 11, 2013, to January 10, 2014 (up to 6pm). The Guide to Application and relevant materials have been uploaded to the website of the Home Affairs Bureau, www.hab.gov.hk. Application workshops will be held in late November 2013 and details can be found on the above-mentioned website. The ACAD envisages that the application results will be released around late May/early June 2014.
The ACDFS aims to supplement existing funding schemes for the arts and, in particular, to provide funding opportunities to enhance capacity development for promising arts groups and practitioners, and to support activities/projects of a large scale and/or of a long time frame. It also seeks to encourage the community to support and sponsor arts and cultural initiatives so as to foster a tripartite partnership among the Government, arts groups and the private sector to promote arts and cultural development in Hong Kong.
Assessment criteria for the applications include artistic/professional merit, creativity and originality, impact on the arts sector and the community, technical feasibility, financial viability, and experience and execution capability of the applicant and participating arts practitioners.
The ACDFS will disburse an annual provision of approximately $30 million in the form of Springboard Grants and Project Grants.
Springboard Grants are matching grants that support arts groups in their overall development, elevating them to a higher level of professional operation. The minimum pledged income or sponsorship of arts groups is $1 million, of which not less than $250,000 has to come from non-government sponsorship and/or private donation. A 200 per cent matching grant up to a maximum amount of $3 million may be provided and the funding period may last for a maximum of two years. Successful applicants with proven performance may apply for a consecutive Springboard Grant up to a maximum amount of $4.5 million in a maximum funding period of three years. For a consecutive Springboard Grant, the minimum pledged sponsorship or income of arts groups is $1.5 million, of which not less than $375,000 has to come from non-government sponsorship and/or private donation. It is envisaged that a maximum grant of $7.5 million for two terms of support in five years will help promote the growth of arts groups.
Project Grants are direct grants which will provide arts practitioners and arts groups with funding support ranging from $800,000 to $2 million per proposal to organise impactful arts projects with a larger scale and a longer time frame. The overall budget of the proposed activities/project in an application should be at or above $800,000.
Ends/Monday, November 11, 2013
Issued at HKT 17:38
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