Artists Call-out Bram Stoker Festival 2014

The Bram Stoker Festival celebrates the life, work and legacy of Bram Stoker and his gothic masterpiece ‘Dracula’. Running from 24th – 27th October 2014, the festival will see Dublin transformed into a lively gothic-inspired city of the macabre.

The festival is currently inviting submissions from artists, arts organisations and creative producers to engage with the city, its public and the festival by responding with ideas for unique work of all scales that will thrill audiences of all ages. The main focus for the call-out this year is work that gives a contemporary twist to gothic interpretations stemming from Bram Stoker’s work. We are hoping to commission contemporary work inspired by more recent takes on “the gothic”.

This call-out is open to performance and installation based art forms (e.g. dance, music, opera, theatre, visual art, sound art, video art etc.).

The successful proposals will ideally involve artists making new work as a central aspect of the commission, but pre-existing work that clearly sits within the context of the festival is also welcome.

Context
Bram Stoker (1847 – 1912), was born in Dublin and was the author of the classic gothic novel, Dracula (1897), which has since become one of the most influential cultural phenomena of the modern era.

Stoker did not invent vampires, but his Count Dracula became the mark by which, all other vampire stories are measured. Since his death Stoker has remained a somewhat enigmatic and isolated figure. When he died, not a single obituary mentioned his most famous work. Today it has been translated into over fifty languages and Count Dracula has become the most filmed fictional character in movie history.

The Bram Stoker Festival aspires to honour his memory and achievements and to encourage a spirit of enquiry and curiosity, inspired by the creator of one of literature’s most famous characters. Bram Stoker was a man of action: a high-achieving student at Trinity; a fine athlete; a dynamic theatrical manager during his tenure as director of London’s Lyceum Theatre.

Now in its 3rd year, the 2014 festival is being programmed and produced in 2014 by Big House Productions.

Submissions
Closing Date: Friday 18th July 2014

Artists or organisations are asked to submit a proposal and provide links to material relating to previous work in electronic format only for the attention of Jo Mangan, Artistic Director, Bram Stoker Festival at submissions@bighouseproductions.ie.

Successful applicants only will be notified by Friday 8th August.

Proposals
Proposals of no more than 4 x A4 pages in Word format should include:
•  Artistic concept
•  How the proposed commission will relate to the context of the festival
•  Supporting material (web links only for images,videos etc). Please note we will not accept video files/photo files/music files by email
•  Summary biographies of team members
•  Separately please attach an excel of the proposed detailed budget

General Conditions
•  Submissions in hard copy or those which do not follow the guidelines outlined here will not be accepted or returned.
•  Late submissions will not be accepted.
•  The selection panel, whose decision is final, has the right to clarify any issue which may arise in the course of selection.
•  Artists or teams may be asked to supply the names and contact details of referees as part of the selection process.
•  Big House Productions reserve the right not to award commissions and in this instance reserves the right to pursue other selection processes.

Terms and Conditions
•  The successful artist/team will be issued with a contract.
•  The Commissioners will not insure equipment belonging to the artist or their associates.
•  The artwork must comply with Health and Safety standards.
•  Child and Vulnerable Adults Protection: Selected artists will be required to follow national policy with regard to commissions involving interaction with children, young people and/or vulnerable adults and where applicable undergo training in this area, as per national requirements.
•  Applicants should note that all commissions awarded are VAT inclusive, (whether VAT liability lies with the artist or the Commissioner).  Non-resident artists from EU and non-EU countries must be aware of any tax or VAT implications arising from the commission and ensure that any costs arising from this are included in their budget.

Further Information
Applicants are welcome to make enquiries regarding commissions/ submissions. These can be directed to Sam Keely at Big House Productions at sam@bighouseproductions.ie

For more information about The Bram Stoker Festival please see www.bramstokerfestival.com
For more information about Big House Productions, please see www.bighouseproductions.ie

The Bram Stoker Festival is an initiative of Dublin City Council and Fáilte Ireland.
Bram Stoker Festival 2014 is programmed and produced by Big House Productions.
Communication and press by Limelight Communications