A list for financing for artistic projects
As a young talent you may have a lot of ideas to develop your artistic career. That’s not a problem! But as you will soon discover if you haven’t already: having ideas is not always enough. To set them in motion, it takes, most of the time, money. There are many creative ways to find financing to develop your various projects: grants, microcredit (or community credit), crowdfunding and private sponsorship, among others.
Step by step, let’s take a look at the 1001 ways to finance your artistic projects.
The subsidies
While this is not the easiest way, grants can help you fund different types of projects. You will be able to participate in artistic events outside the country, devote more time to your production, promote your art and even improve yourself.
Grants can come from your municipality, the government or from various organizations such as Artère, the RAAV or the Conseil des arts et des lettres au Québec, or the Maison des artistes en France (discover many other organizations by watching our webinar).
The first thing you do when you want to apply for a grant is to set aside your embarrassment, pick up the phone and call the organization with your question. You will be able to ask the person in charge for help to verify your eligibility and also to ensure that you present your project according to their criteria.
Microcredit
Microcredit allows artists who do not have access to traditional credit to obtain a loan of less value ($2,000 or $3,000 for example). To be eligible, you must have a clear project to submit, be over 18 years of age, have a low income and reside in the organization’s territory. In addition, you will have to commit to attending one or more information meetings, and accept the support of proximity (mentoring).
The sponsorship
Sponsorship is a financial contribution made in exchange for visibility or equivalent service. You could, for example, post the name of your sponsor on your website or install a small banner on your booth during a show. Try to find sponsors whose activity is related to what you do!
Don’t be afraid to ask; companies are open to sponsorships. It augments their sense of presence at events, gives them visibility and can even bring them new customers. In addition, for a company, sponsorships are advertising expenses. It is therefore tax deductible for them!
Socio-financing
Crowdfunding has been growing around the world for a number of years. You may have contributed to a campaign yourself. With crowdfunding, small individual contributions are collected from a large pool of donors through an online platform such as Kickstarter (international), La Ruche (Quebec) or Kiss Kiss Bank (France), to name a few.
See here a list of all crowdfunding platforms around the world. Take your time to review and analyze some of them. Each platform has its own speciality and some will be better suited to artistic projects than others.
Here are a few steps to consider when you choose to engage in a crowdfunding campaign :
Have a clear plan! What do you want to do with the money raised? Why would people want to give you money?
Determine the financial objective of your campaign. How much do you need to complete your project?
Determine the length of your campaign. We suggest that it does not exceed 3 or 4 weeks—enough to make your campaign known to a large pool of people, but not that much that to make them feel bombarded by the promotion on your part.
Determine your counterparty model. You will rarely find people willing to give you money just to support your career. In a crowdfunding campaign, you have to offer something in exchange for a certain amount! For example, in exchange for a $20 donation, you could offer a postcard illustrated with one of your works, with a personalized word written by hand. For those who donate $50, you could offer a print of one of your paintings! There are many possibilities to discover.
Create a video. Film yourself, present your project, sell it!
Promote your campaign. That’s an obvious calculation. Without promotion, your campaign simply won’t work. You have to tell people that your campaign exists, attract them, and motivate them to take part in it. Talk about your campaign on your website, on your newsletter, and on your social media. And don’t just mention it— Talk about it first, and talk about it at the same time.
