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European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists - EFFEA

The European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists - EFFEA is an initiative of the European Festivals Association that offers emerging artists a platform to develop their careers on an international level through festivals.

What is EFFEA?

Festivals act as fertile ground for tapping into and expanding talents. They are spaces of exchange between artists and the public, facilitate connections among artists themselves and with other professionals. Festivals are alchemists of innovation, curators of risk-taking endeavours, both guardians and intermediary springboards for artists across artistic disciplines. The European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists – EFFEA, an initiative of the European Festivals Association, is a system built to empower festivals and offer emerging artists a platform to establish themselves on the international stage. EFFEA extends an open invitation for festivals to work across borders and create a network of colleagues with shared goals. It recognises that the future lies in the synergy of diverse perspectives and collective efforts. Through EFFEA, festivals join hands to foster the success of emerging artists. EFFEA is the next step in a movement of festivals in Europe that recognise themselves and commit to working together at a European level. It builds on the preparatory action called EFFE: Europe for Festivals Festivals for Europe.

Main Objectives

  • To offer emerging artists more opportunities to present their work and develop their career on an international level
  • To offer cooperation opportunities for festivals to work across borders on the topic of emerging artists
  • To offer audiences new and surprising encounters with emerging artists in their towns and cities through the platforms of their festivals

Who will benefit from this Fund?

Festivals
How? Network and collaboration between Festivals; new programmes and new artists for Festivals; financial support to promote the artists at a European level.

Emerging Artists who are proposed by the festivals
How? Research; network (of programmers and local artists in different countries); residencies/ workshops/ masterclasses; European visibility; capacity building; presentation in different festivals in different countries.

Audiences
How? Access to new talents and artists; access to new arts and repertoire; access to diverse and interdisciplinary works.

Between 1 June 2024 and 31 May 2025, 57 emerging artists and 159 festivals selected under EFFEA Call #3 are working on their residency programmes throughout Europe and beyond. 
The next EFFEA Call will be announced in the second half of 2025 and will support residencies occurring in 2026. More details will follow. 

To stay updated, please visit the website news section and Facebook page regularly. We also encourage you to join the EFFEA Facebook Community, a platform where you can connect with fellow artists and festival organisers

News

  1. EFFEA Story: Itt es Most Tarsulat
    17-10-24

    EFFEA Story: Itt es Most Tarsulat

    Residency of Itt es Most Tarsulat, hosted by RUSZT Festival in partnership with Espontâneo & Irish Improv Festival

  2. EFFEA 2025-2028 Fund for Emerging Artists & Festivals
    15-10-24

    EFFEA 2025-2028 Fund for Emerging Artists & Festivals

    The European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists, an init...

  3. EFFEA Story: Bandia Ribeira
    11-10-24

    EFFEA Story: Bandia Ribeira

    Residency of Bandia Ribeira, hosted by Ffoco Festival in partnership with Bristol Photo Festival & Glaz Festival

  4. EFFEA Story: Olga Grybowicz
    25-09-24

    EFFEA Story: Olga Grybowicz

    Residency of Olga Grybowicz, hosted by Bella Skyway Festival in partnership with Blik Blik & Fjord Oslo

  5. EFFEA Story: Thomas Ott
    20-09-24

    EFFEA Story: Thomas Ott

    Residency of Thomas Ott, hosted by Waking Life in partnership with Horst, Solstice Festival & Roots 

  6. EFFEA Story: Alessandro Businaro
    12-09-24

    EFFEA Story: Alessandro Businaro

    Residency of Alessandro Businaro, hosted by Teatro in Quota in partnership with Les Longues Journées

  7. EFFEA Story: Mairi Pardalaki
    05-09-24

    EFFEA Story: Mairi Pardalaki

    Residency of Mairi Pardalaki, hosted by Dance Laboratory Rhodes in partnership with Istanbul Fringe Festival & Dance Days Chania

  8. EFFEA Story: Nikolina Krstičević
    02-09-24

    EFFEA Story: Nikolina Krstičević

    Residency of Nikolina Krstičević, hosted by CONTEXTILE – Bienal de Arte Têxtil Contemporânea in partnership with BIE...

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