Plovdiv 2019 Foundation announces an open call for project proposals aiming to offer an opportunity for presentation of cultural organizations and artists from Plovdiv, to support, activate, and mobilize the creative potential of the city, as well as to ensure the sustainable continuation of the European Capital of Culture initiative.
The open call is valid for project implementation on the territory of Plovdiv in 2021 and 2022 and is targeted at cultural organizations, independent curators, and artists from Plovdiv. The applicants can be both such who have already had a selected and implemented project in the main programme of Plovdiv – ECoC 2019 in the period 2017 – 2020 and aim to offer upgrading and sustainability of the implemented projects and partnerships as well as new partners, who so far did not have an approved project proposal in the programme of Plovdiv ECoC 2019 and who would like to contribute with their ideas towards the implementation of the aims of the ECoC initiative.
The invitation would support projects, events, publications, festivals, performance within the sphere of activity of visual arts, theatre, dance, music, literature, cinema, photography, art in public space, digital arts, design and architecture, education and capacity development, crafts, and creative industry. The project proposals can plan events and festival editions for only one of the two years – 2021 or 2022.
Legal entities and individuals with registration and activity in the city of Plovdiv can apply for this open call.
The maximum funding an applicant can apply for per project is up to BGN 70 000,00 and the applicant should plan their own contribution of at least 30% of the total value of the project.
The main requirement for all applicants is the preparation of a realistic budget that corresponds to the scale and activities foreseen in the project proposal.
PROJECT PROPOSALS SHOULD BUILD ON:
- The concept and the philosophy of the programme for Plovdiv – European Capital of Culture and where possible to enrich festivals and events which were implemented as part of the official programme of Plovdiv ECoC 2019 /for details here/.
- The specific local features of Plovdiv as established and internationally renowned cultural and tourist centre.
- The culture, perceptions and attitudes of the communities and groups involved as participants and audiences.
- The requirement to develop and strive for long-term partnership and sustainability of the project.
The Current Bulgarian legislation.
GENERAL CONDITIONS, SCHEDULE OF COMPETITION AND FINANCIAL PARAMETERS:
- The overall budget of Plovdiv 2019 Foundation for this open call: 500 000.00 BGN
Plovdiv 2019 Foundation preserves the right not to allocate the full designated budget in case of an insufficient number of projects or in the absence of convincing applications. - Application period: 18th January till 15th March 2021.
- Project implementation period: from 30th April 2021 till 30th November 2022.
- It is a prerequisite for each applicant under the open call to participate with their own contribution to the project with at least 30% of the total budget of the project.
Own contribution shall be understood to mean both a financial contribution in the form of a monetary contribution provided for the purposes of the project and a non-financial contribution with the resources of the organization or third parties contracted by it. The non-financial /in-kind/ contribution is restricted to 20 % of their own contribution. The non-financial contribution is subject to the following conditions: 1. Includes land, real estate, equipment and/or materials, research or professional activities, or free, voluntary work, etc. provided for the purposes of the project 2. If provided by a third party (e.g. a government institution, business, etc.) that is not a project partner, this contribution should be presented as a non-financial contribution, provided by the partners, who will use it to carry out the project activities ( e.g., “airline tickets, overnights, advertising space and packages, food, supplies, printed materials, etc.). 3. In the case of land and real estate, the value is certified by an independent appraiser or the relevant officially authorized institution; 4. In the case of free voluntary work, the value of that work is determined in accordance with the time spent and the standard payment for the type of work involved. The non-financial contribution to the budget is indicated at application, in the form.
The Plovdiv 2019 Foundation will not financially support projects that have been financed through the Plovdiv City 2021 and 2022 cultural calendars, as well as other and other funding programmes of Plovdiv Municipality, as well projects that had been selected for funding through the first LEGACY open call of Plovdiv 2019 Foundation or through LEGACY II – segment ”FESTIVALS AND CREATIVE ACTIVITIES”.
The call does NOT cover the cost of acquiring tangible and intangible assets, repairs, and administrative expenses /such as office space rent, consumables, office maintenance, catering, administrative manager and project accountant, etc./.
The invitation does NOT cover interest costs on loans, debt service fees and penalties for late payments, fee costs, losses from currency exchange subject to VAT refund, costs covered by other sources, fines and penalties for court fees processes, costs incurred as a result of a change that has not been agreed in advance in writing with the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation.
Plovdiv 2019 Foundation reserves the right to reduce the amounts of the requested financial support if they groundless or considered excessive or incompatible given the financial limit of the open call. In cases where the jury selects a project but reduces the budget, the applicant must, within a specified period, after the public announcement of the ranking, confirm in writing whether the terms of funding are acceptable and submit an updated budget and schedule.
The financial support from the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation, by this call, is paid as follows: 70% advance payment /after a signed promissory note by the applicant/ and 30% – after project completion.
The detailed conditions and obligations of the partnership with the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation are regulated by a contract signed between the winning participant and the Foundation, based on the Bulgarian legislation and in accordance with the ranking by the jury. Contracts for the implementation of the project will be concluded after the expiry of the term for confirmation and after approval by the Plovdiv Foundation 2019 Technical Committee on the eligibility of costs in the updated forms.
Amendments to the contract, including its annexes, shall be made in writing. In case a “minor change” of the contract is required, the beneficiary to notify the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation by letter. After written approval by the Foundation, the change can be made. The notification letter should contain a clear justification as to the circumstances necessitating the amendment. A “minor change” of the contract is considered to be a change in the place of performance of the activities in objective and unforeseen circumstances; a justified increase of the quantitative indicators for the set activities, without leading to a change in the scope of audiences, target groups and the project budget; increase or decrease of the expenses under budget items in the amount of up to 10% of the project value, but not more than BGN 50 000.00 BGN, without leading to an increase in the total amount of the granted financial aid under the project. All other cases than those mentioned are considered a “substantial change”. In all cases of “substantial change” of the contract, it is done by signing an additional agreement (annex) to the contract by mutual consent of both parties.
It is permissible for the same organization or person to participate with only one project. When submitting more than one proposal, only the first received at the time will be considered. More than one partnership is eligible for each project, but the open call does not allow for duplication of funding activities.
Expenditure on the implementation of projects approved under this open call may be incurred only after the date of conclusion of the contract between the Foundation and the approved applicant.
WHO CAN APPLY?
- Bulgarian and/or foreign legal entities who are registered and work in the city of Plovdiv. Applicants must be registered under the Non-Profit Legal Entities Act or the Commercial Act. For foreign legal entities, a document certifying their registration and current status or a certified current reference from the Registry Agency shall be attached.
- Bulgarian and/or foreign adult natural persons, craftsmen and freelancers registered in the BULSTAT Register with an address of registration and activity the city of Plovdiv.
- Cooperatives under the Cooperatives Act with an address of registration and activity the city of Plovdiv.
- Civil societies under the Obligations and Contracts Act with an address of registration and activity the city of Plovdiv.
- State cultural institutes and other legal entities established by an act of a state body /universities, schools, etc./.
Not eligible for financing are entities which:
- Have been declared bankrupt or are in bankruptcy proceedings.
- Are in liquidation proceedings.
- Have monetary obligations to the state or to the Municipality of Plovdiv, established by an effective act of a competent authority, or obligations to insurance authorities, unless the competent authority has allowed deferral of the obligations.
- Have been convicted by final judgment of an offense against property or against the economy, unless rehabilitated.
- Are employees of the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation or members of management bodies of the Plovdiv 2019 Foundation.
* The fulfillment of the above requirements is also certified by a declaration, which is an integral part of the application documents.
The complete set of application documents for the Open call you can download from HERE.