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Forecast Platform – The Call for Ideas is Open

The mentors in Forecast’s eighth edition engage with practices that highlight the autonomy of creative endeavors and emphasize the significance of independent artmaking in today’s deeply politicized climate of cultural production and its reception.

As an international mentorship program with annual editions, Forecast offers artists and creative thinkers from anywhere in the world the chance to work with accomplished mentors toward bringing their projects to fruition. For each edition, Forecast selects six mentors from various disciplines who offer selected participants their expertise in specifying and realizing project ideas. The mentors in the 2023–24 edition and the fields of mentorship in this edition are listed here.

The deadline for application is 11:59pm CET on Sunday, February 26, 2023. To guarantee fair conditions for everyone, we cannot accept any applications that reach us after the deadline.

Applying is only possible via the online application form. However, in case you’d like to send additional material via postal mail, please contact us at: info@forecast-platform.com. Please note that we cannot return any material sent to us via postal mail.

Please make sure that you hold the copyrights to all material submitted. We may use parts of your application in our documentation, even if you are not invited to participate in the Forum and Festival.

Forecast only accepts applications in English. Furthermore, all public events and communication take place in English.

What should the application include?

There are no restrictions or requirements regarding disciplines or genres and no overarching theme. However, we strongly advise applicants to reflect on the mentor’s approach to creative production before applying, as well as on the public nature of the Forecast Forum and Festival, which requires that you convey your project to an audience.

In the online application form, you will be requested to enter the following:

  • Basic information: name, year of birth (used solely for internal administrative purposes), current address, country of residence, citizenship(s), pronouns, and email.
  • Mentor: name the mentor you’re applying to work with.
  • Your core concept: up to 1,400 characters max.
  • Your proposal*: a single PDF, 16 MB max.
  • Your portfolio: a single PDF, up to eight pages.
  • Curriculum vitae as a PDF.
  • Your life and career: tell us about three moments in your life, experiences, projects, or jobs that have been of special importance to you, 600 characters max.
  • Your compliance with the Terms and Conditions.

*In general, the proposal requires that you:

  • Clearly define your project idea and express what you want to achieve.
  • Sketch the content and format of your participation at the Forecast Forum and Festival. What is the relation between the format (performance, presentation, talk, workshop, screening, installation, etc.) and what you are seeking to convey?
  • Identify the key materials that you need, as well as production steps.
  • Describe how the project could gain from working in tandem with the mentor you have chosen to apply with, and your expectations of the mentoring process.

How does Forecast work?

Each edition of Forecast is different; the selected mentors impact the nature and content of every iteration. Forecast is not a grant. It is first and foremost a mentorship program meant to promote a deep transdisciplinary exchange and extend professional networks. If you are selected as a nominee and later, as a mentee, you will also receive an artist fee and production budget, in addition to support in applying to further collaborations and/or funding.

The selection process is two-tiered. First, the mentors carefully review all proposals in their respective fields until May. They each select three nominated concepts, which will be announced on May 9, 2023. The 18 nominees—three in each field—are invited to Berlin to workshop with and showcase their project proposals at Radialsystem during the Forecast Forum taking place July 10–17, 2023. Nominees receive an artist fee for their participation in the Forum. Travel and accommodation are covered by Forecast (if you apply as a duo or collective, note that Forecast can only cover the cost of one representative).

Following the Forum, each mentor will select one concept to accompany to its realization over the following months. The outcomes of these collaborations will then be presented at the Forecast Festival, taking place at Radialsystem, Berlin, March 15–16, 2024 (with set-ups starting from March 11, 2024.)

If you are chosen as a mentee, you will take part in a work-stay with your mentor at a partner institution. Here, the mentee and the mentor—who usually live and work in different parts of the world—come together for several days of creative exchanges and concrete mentoring. As part of the work-stay, you and the mentor would potentially host a public event or a workshop at the partner institution to present your work within the framework of Forecast.

Mentees also receive a production budget and an artist fee to realize their project, as listed in our Terms and Conditions. The final productions will then be presented at the Forecast Festival, taking place at Radialsystem, Berlin in March, 2024.

How does Forecast work?

As an international mentorship program with annual editions, Forecast offers artists and creative thinkers from anywhere in the world the chance to work with accomplished mentors toward bringing their projects to fruition. For each edition, Forecast selects six mentors from various disciplines who offer participants their expertise in specifying and realizing their project ideas. Each edition of Forecast is different; the selected mentors impact the nature and content of every iteration.

Creative minds from anywhere in the world working in various disciplines are invited to submit project proposals via an open call. The selection process is two-tiered. First, the mentors select three nominated concepts each, which will be announced on May 9, 2023. The 18 nominees—three in each field—are invited to Berlin to discuss their ideas and present them at Radialsystem during the Forecast Forum taking place July 10–17, 2023. Following the Forum, each mentor will select one concept to accompany to its realization over the following months. The outcomes of these collaborations will then be presented at the Forecast Festival, taking place at Radialsystem, Berlin, March 15–16, 2024 (with set-ups starting from March 11, 2024.)

Who may apply?

Anyone from anywhere who is working creatively in a field that they consider connected with one of the mentors in this year’s edition, or in related practices. We recommend looking at the mentors’ statements and familiarizing yourself with their work before deciding whether to apply, and with what project. After all, you and the mentor would work together for several months if you’re selected, so you should have an idea of what they would be able to provide in their mentorship role.

How may I benefit as a participant? What can I expect?

Forecast provides the exchange of thoughts—including criticism, inspiration, and encouragement—from experienced and open-minded people leading remarkable careers. Functioning as an interdisciplinary mentorship program, Forecast provides access to a unique network, be it through the mentors and participants involved, the organizations collaborating with Forecast, or the institutions that our mentors lead or work with. A key benefit could be the opportunity to achieve a first realization of the project you have been dreaming of, and to present it to the public.

Am I too inexperienced? Or am I too far along in my career?

As Forecast is meant for creative thinkers who push the boundaries of genres and disciplines, it could be that you do not have a wide range of experience related to the category you’re applying in, but do in other creative fields. We are also convinced that being a forward thinker does not necessarily have to do with age. It means that you are setting out to explore new territories, so we do not impose any age limit.

What are the criteria for getting invited? Who decides?

Forecast’s core interest is the individual quality of each proposal. Each mentor personally decides whom they want to invite to the Forecast Forum, and, after workshopping with the three nominees during the Forum week, whose project will be brought to fruition together and showcased at the Forecast Festival. While developing your application, please consider what might be a connection between your practice and that of the intended mentor.

Is Forecast a grant?

Forecast is first and foremost a mentorship program meant to promote a deep transdisciplinary exchange and extend professional networks. If you are selected as a nominee and later, as a mentee, you will also receive an artist fee and production budget, in addition to support in applying to further collaborations and/or funding. See our Terms and Conditions for more details regarding artist fee and production support.

Is Forecast a residency?

No. The only gatherings happening in Berlin are the week of the Forecast Forum and later, the Forecast Festival. The mentoring may take place wherever each mentor and mentee live or work. However, Forecast will organize a joint work–stay meeting for both mentor and mentee, lasting up to a week and hosted by a partner institution. The place and time of that work–stay phase will be agreed upon prior to the Forecast Forum.

Will travel and accommodation costs to the events in Berlin be covered?

If you are invited to present your concept at the Forecast Forum in Berlin, Forecast will grant you accommodation and travel costs, and provide infrastructure and space for your presentation at radialsystem. However, if you apply as a duo or collective, Forecast can cover travel and accommodation for only one member.

What do the events look like?

The Forecast Forum is meant for discussing and further developing the submitted proposals, and to test the potentials of individual practices and possible mentor–mentee collaborations. As an invited participant, you will have the opportunity to exchange ideas with a group of fascinating practitioners, both mentors and fellow participants, and to present and discuss your concept. Each mentor will work on the proposals by their three invited participants, aiming to find meaningful ways to develop them further. The Radialsystem building will be available for workshops, discussions, installations, performances, or other kinds of presentations.

The concluding Forecast Festival showcases the results of all six productions to the public, and conveys the project development and the mentoring process as such. This can happen in the form of installations, concerts, video screenings, performances, or any other kind of presentation to an audience. Each mentor helps to prepare and fine-tune the mentee’s work.

What will the mentoring process look like?

The mentoring phase between July 2023 and March 2024 is flexible and not bound to a specific place. The form and frequency of the exchange depends on the mentee’s and mentor’s needs and abilities. While the mentoring itself takes place directly between the mentor and mentee, without Forecast’s mediation, the Forecast team will arrange conversations with both parties at regular intervals to follow the project’s progress.

What happens if the mentor and I just do not fit together?

The nature of the mentorship program implies that the relation between the mentor and the mentee can become quite personal. The Forum week in July will provide a first opportunity to build a relationship and explore ways of discussing each work. We believe that the best possible match will be made, as each mentor decides with whom he or she wants to collaborate only after having the opportunity to engage with all three possible candidates and their projects for an entire week, during the Forum. We are convinced that both the mentees’ and mentors’ interests and curiosity will fuel this process. Certainly, our team will always be there to support and/or moderate the mentoring process, if desired.

May I apply to collaborate with a mentor who usually does not work in the field or discipline I propose?

Absolutely. Each mentor decides whom to invite, depending on what potential they see in your proposal. On our website, each mentor expresses a certain interest and/or expectation regarding the collaboration within Forecast, so we recommend taking these statements into consideration.

I have already done a project that I am proud of. Could I apply proposing this project?

No. Forecast is about the process of developing a new idea, with all its unpredictability. If we do not see the potential for development, your proposal will not fit Forecast’s concept. You may use your portfolio in your application to show the range of your work.

May I submit various projects for one edition of Forecast?

No. Please apply with the project that is most relevant to you.

May I apply for multiple mentors?

No (and yes). If you are undecided about your intended mentor or could imagine an alternative mentor for your project, please mention that in your proposal. It may actually happen that even though your intended mentor does not choose you, another one of the six will take interest in your proposal.

We are a collective. May we apply as a team?

Yes. But please note that we cannot provide a travel allowance for more than one participant, and the total production budget and artist fee remain the same, regardless of how many collaborators are involved.

 

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