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Deadline May 7 | Call for Projects: Arab Fund for Arts and Culture (literature, performing arts and visual arts)

Deadline: 7 May 2012

The Arab Fund for Arts and Culture (AFAC) announced today its first 2012 semi-annual open call for its three general categories: Literature, Performing Arts and Visual Arts. This general call is open exclusively for Arab candidates and the deadline for applying to any of the three categories is May 7, 2012. The next semi-annual call for Music, Cinema, and Research, Training and Regional Events opens in July 2012.

Literature: Research, writing and publishing of literary works, including novels, short stories, poetry, translations and biographies, in print and online.

Performing Arts: Development and production of theatrical, dance, as well as other forms of performing arts.

Visual Arts: Production and organization of art exhibitions, installations, and other forms of visual arts.

Please consult the Grant Guidelines (below), Evaluation Process, and FAQs before applying.
To apply, please create an account on AFAC’s website here, in case you don’t have one.
Subsequently, the applications will be available at your user’s dashboard after you login using your account details.

GRANT GUIDELINES

1. About AFAC’s Grants

• AFAC provides grants amounting up to fifty thousand U.S. dollars each.
• If the grant from AFAC exceeds ten thousand dollars, but only covers part of the project’s overall budget, the grantee must raise 70% of the remaining budget in order to be awarded the grant.
• In the event that the grantee is unable to procure 70% of the project budget within 90 days of receiving the grant, the latter will be canceled.
• In the event that the grantee does not sign the grant contract within 60 days upon receipt thereof, the grant will be canceled.
• No grantee will be awarded more than two deadline extensions during the grant period; such extensions should be justified and approved by AFAC.

2. Eligible Candidates

The Arab Fund for Arts and Culture invites all Arab parties working in the cultural and artistic spheres, whose projects target the Arab region, to send their project proposals regardless of age, years of experience, nationality, country of residence (Arab world and abroad), ethnicity, religion or any other factor. This includes:

• Individuals
• NGOs
• Cultural/educational institutions and centers
• Organizations, institutions, governmental and non-governmental bodies concerned with culture and the arts

3. Ineligible Applicants

AFAC will not consider applications submitted by:

• Members of the Board of Trustees, their business partners or family members
• AFAC staff members, their business partners or family members
• Members of the jury, their business partners or family members

4. Eligible Expenses

• AFAC only covers project-related expenses, and not running operating costs.
Example: AFAC will cover the rent of a temporary location to be used by a theater troupe for rehearsals and performances as well as the crew members’ salaries throughout the production period, but will not cover operational expenses, such as the rent of the troupe’s permanent premises or permanent employees’ salaries.

5. Place and Duration

• AFAC will not provide support retroactively, i.e. to projects already implemented
• Projects may be implemented anywhere as long as they mainly target an Arab audience
• The project’s timeframe should not be less than one month nor exceed 24 months

6. Eligible Applications

• An applicant may submit two grant requests for two projects in two different categories (for example, performing arts and cinema). Requests for two projects within the same category will not be accepted.
• Previous grantees may not apply for a new grant unless the previous grant expired before the application submission deadline for this year.
• Grantees who have received two grants may only apply for a third grant two years after the end of the awarded projects.

7. How to Apply

• Only applications that are filled in online on our website will be processed and evaluated. Applications submitted via regular mail or e-mail will not be accepted.
• All required documents can be uploaded into the application. Links to work samples on sites such as YouTube, Vimeo or Dropbox can also be uploaded directly into the application. Only supporting files/samples of previous work exceeding 2 MB should be sent by physical mail to AFAC’s office in Beirut. Please do not mail duplicates of work uploaded into the application.
• If sending materials by physical mail for AFAC’s general grant application, please send 5 copies of all accompanying work to AFAC’s Beirut office, postmarked by the relevant deadline and marked with the project title and application number.
• If sending materials by physical mail for the Arab Documentary Film Program application, please send 7 copies of all accompanying materials, postmarked by the relevant deadline and marked with the project title and application number. AFAC does not return application materials.
• Samples should be mailed through a major courier; it is recommended that applicants submit tracking numbers in their applications. Incomplete applications or applications missing supporting documents will not be reviewed.
• You will receive email confirmation once the online application has been received. You are advised to follow up on receipt for mailed material, as we will not contact you if any part of your application is incomplete.

8. Evaluation and Selection Process

Following the submission deadline, AFAC will conduct an administrative check to ensure that applications are complete and adhere to the guidelines. Only applications that pass the administrative check will be processed. A selection committee will then assess the received proposals and select the winners. Please see ‘Evaluation Process’ for more details. The grant winners’ names will be published on our website.

9. Grant Contracts

AFAC will draft a contract to be signed by the winners. The contract will include contract start and end dates, grant amount, financial requirements, payment schedule, general provisions, implementation and amendments, required reports, and project results.

10. Payment Schedule

If AFAC awards a grantee US $10,000 or less, he or she will receive 80% of the grant total amount as a first payment. Once the project is complete and the winner has submitted the deliverables, narrative and financial reports, the remaining 20% will be transferred.
For grants exceeding US $10,000, grantees will receive 50% of the grant total amount as the first payment. Once 80% of the first payment has been spent, the grantee must submit an interim narrative and financial report to AFAC. Once approved, grantees will receive 25% of the grant total amount as a second payment. With submission of the final deliverables, the final 25% payment will be made and the grant will be closed.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

For inquiries: info@arabculturefund.org

For submissions: create an account here

Website: http://www.arabculturefund.org

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Deadline May 7 | Call for Projects: Arab Fund for Arts and Culture (literature, performing arts and visual arts) + writing scholarship