Allocation of funds
The Cultural Business Development Foundation will allocate around NOK 15 million a year to the development of the cultural industry for the public benefit within SpareBank 1 Nord-Norge's market area (Nordland, Troms, Finnmark and Svalbard). Allocation will occur by means of financial support to culture-related businesses and culture-promoting activities, in some cases also by means of investment and loans.
Charitable causes
The Norwegian savings banks give part of their profits to charitable causes, including the establishment and development of the cultural industry. This is intended as a supplement to private capital and public subsidy schemes. When funding is gifted to charitable causes, there is no requirement for direct reciprocity.
The most important criterion for supporting charitable causes is that they can be demonstrated to be of public benefit to many people. Gifting funds to charitable causes creates jobs and generates activity for other businesses in the region. This creates a basis for establishing and developing commercial activity and partnerships that will benefit society. The general concept also includes the promotion of entrepreneurship, technological development or network and structure building that benefit many in the cultural industry. Support can also be given to projects that are essentially a matter of public responsibility, if such support can help to accelerate the implementation of the project. Purely private or commercial purposes are outside the scope, however. There is a restrictive attitude to covering ongoing operations.
Applications
- In the spring 2018 the call for applicartions is limited to projects within dramatic art, as well as multi-diciplinary projects that include dramatic art.
- Daedline for applications: March 1th 2018.
Who can apply
The target group is professional performers and artists, producers and organisations, including applicants who are in the process of establishing themselves as professionals or producers. Applicants would normally be located in North Norway and Svalbard, or have relevant activities in the area.
Voluntary organisations and associations are referred to other sources of finance.
Project collaboration
Collaboration in building up networks and competence, collaboration across county borders, collaboration with North West Russia and multi-disciplinary collaboration are all regarded as positive.
Evaluation criteria
Only applications that fall within the foundation's purpose and that satisfy the requirements for public benefit will be considered. These will be considered on the following criteria:
- Artistic and cultural content
- The potential of the project
- Project manager and project group (CVs, history, references)
- Implementation and financing plan
Project duration
All projects have to be finished by December 1th, 2018.
Complex projects
In the case of larger initiatives or infrastructure projects that involve a number of principals and sources of finance, it will be natural to have a dialogue between the involved parties over the course of time. In such cases, decisions regarding support by the foundation may be considered outside the normal application periods.
Collaboration with other industries
The foundation is able to participate in projects in which the arts and cultural industries are linked with other industries, such as tourism, the catering and attractions industry, information technology or the media. This would normally assume that the main source of finance will not be the Cultural Business Development Foundation and that a decision on participation can be taken outside the foundation's normal application periods.
Short- and documentary films
Each year, the Foundation will give a total of NOK 600 000 in support to six short- and documentary films. Producers should not apply directly to the Foundation for support. The selection of projects that will receive grants is done in cooperation with Nordnorsk Filmsenter (NNFS), and applications are handled by the normal application rounds to NNFS in February, April and October every year.
Investments
In the period from 2013 to 2015 the Foundation invested a total of NOK 6,9 million in eleven feature and documentary films. The aim has been to create activity and build competence in the film industry, as well as helping to attract film productions out into the exotic natural surroundings of Northern Norway.
From January 2016 investmens will be done through the regional film investment foundation Filmfond Nord.
The role of the Foundation
The Cultural Business Development Foundation will not be an active part, but can be an advisor in some selected projects. The Foundation will not act as an intermediary between possible partners for funding.