The week in Creative Money (04 September, 2020)
Financial guidance for creative professionals
Creative Money aims to have an open conversation about finances in the creative industries.
It was founded in July, 2020 in an attempt to address a frustrating lack of sound financial guidance for creative workers and is written by me, Matt Parker, a music journalist and lecturer.
The week in Creative Money
04 September, 2020
This week I've been looking for good news. Like many industries, there has been a lot of bad news in the creative sector since the pandemic hit. Spend your time absorbing it all and it really starts to taint your perception of the world around you.
I find I'm generally happier if I focus on doing something instead. Part of the reason I started Creative Money was that I was acutely aware that a lot of people would be facing financial and career upheaval in the coming months and I wanted to do something useful.
The alternative – hitting refresh on live news streams and stoking my own paranoid fears to a point of utter paralysis – did not seem so appealing (though I did give that a good go, too).
One of the unforeseen benefits of starting site, however, has been the discovery of the many organisations and people out there doing superb work on behalf of their fellow creatives. It's amazing how much good news you can find when you're looking for it.
As such, this week I decided to put together a short list of what I consider to be the more positive developments in our world since March: Reasons to be cheerful – what's working in the creative industries.
Writing the piece made me think about how news is created and how I select the things I cover here and on the site. We've got enough platforms spewing bad news and overhyping threats.
With Creative Money, I will spend more of my time highlighting the good things on the intersection of creativity and personal finances. Ideas, resources and principles that can either help you to develop your skills, improve your financial wellbeing, or failing that just leave you feeling a little bit better about what you do.
Until next time,
Matt
Creative Money
On the site this week:
7 reasons to be cheerful: what’s working in the creative industries right now
Creative workers seeking silver linings, start here
How does Patreon work for artists and creators?
The dos and don’ts, with expert guidance from UK podcasters RedHanded.
What do you need to know this week?
DCMS Committee to take evidence on re-opening performance venues on 8 September, 2020 – watch Andrew Lloyd-Webber et al make the case for venues (UK Parliament)
Furlough explained: how the rules have changed in September (Which?)
Coronavirus eviction ban extended: what it means for renters and landlords (Which?)
FREE entry to London Tech Week's online CreaTech conference – "where creativity meets tech" – on 7 September (sign-up required)
FREE online panel on how musical theatre workers are finding ways to generate income (sign-up required) (Musical Theatre Network)
FREE online British Council Film + Music Salon will explore ways of working during the pandemic (sign-up required)
Grants and funding opportunities
CAN Do Creatives free training for unemployed artists in Greater Manchester
CAN is offering free training for unemployed creatives and community leaders who use the arts to empower their communities. Covers employment, project planning, marketing and more. Deadline: 4 September, 2020
Arts Council Cultural Recovery Fund grants
Grants of £50,000 to £3 million for cultural organisations that were financially stable before Covid-19, but are now at imminent risk of failure. 75% of the budget will go on first round of funding. Deadline: 4 September, 2020
MMF ReBuild Fund for UK music managers
The ReBuild fund offers UK music managers affected by Covid-19 one-off grants of up to £3,000 and workshops focused on resilience, sustainability and the future – you must have been an MMF (Music Managers Forum) member since July 2020. Deadline: 7 September, 2020
The Horniman’s 696 Resident Artists programme
The Horniman Museum is looking for artists at the cutting edge of south London’s music scene for year long residencies, offering £3,000 grants, coaching and access to the museum's instrument collection. Deadline: 7 September, 2020
Silent Uproar Writer's Support Plan for theatre writers
Silent Uproar has earmarked £20,000 to support writers who meet one or more of the following criteria: born, raised and/or live in the North of England; have already completed one full-length production (60+ mins) and/or one full-length commission; whose identity is currently under-represented in modern theatre. Deadline: 12 September, 2020
Help Musicians Do It Differently fund
Grants of £3,000 to music creators to fulfil their chosen project, as well as bespoke 1-on-1 business guidance with some of the UK music industry’s leading experts. Deadline: 14 September, 2020
Society Of Authors' Audio Drama Imison Award
A prize of £3,000 for audio drama scripts by a writer new to the medium which were broadcast or made available online between 1 October 2019 and 31 October 2020. Deadline: 4 October, 2020
Unlimited launches new commission round for disabled artists
Unlimited is an arts commissioning programme that enables new work by disabled artists to reach UK and international audiences. They will have £500,000 to commission work from disabled artists and companies in three strands: Main Commission awards, Research and Development awards and Emerging Artists awards. Applications don't open until October, but they're getting the word out nice and early. Deadline: 27 October, 2020
HelpMusicians Financial Hardship Funding Phase 2
Support for music professionals facing hardship due to COVID-19 and excluded from the government's furlough and SEISS schemes. Deadline: 31 October, 2020
Hope Mill Theatre Through The Mill Playwrighting Prize
Opportunity for writers to have their work fully produced by and at Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester. Winner will receive a monetary prize of £5,000 plus one-to-one mentoring with award winning writer Jonathan Harvey (Beautiful Thing, Hushabye Mountain). Deadline: 27 November, 2020.
Royal Variety Charity Financial Assistance grants
The Royal Variety Charity is uniquely positioned to provide financial assistance to anyone who serves any facet of the Entertainment Industry. Deadline: ongoing
The White Pube Writers Grant funded by Creative Debuts
£500 given out monthly to a working class writer based in the UK. This grant has been set up to support writers of all ages who are early in their careers and would benefit from this no-strings attached financial support to help them in whatever they like. Deadline: ongoing
This week's to-do list:
Get this petition from Forgotten Ltd to over 100K Calling for support for directors/shareholders of small Ltd firms who have been excluded from prior support (which is most freelancers who have setup as companies). At 100,000 it gets debated in parliament.