Support for European Cooperation Projects 2019 - Call EACEA/34/2018

Deadline: Dec 11, 2018  
CALL EXPIRED

1. Introduction

This call is based on Regulation No 1295/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 establishing the Creative Europe Programme (2014 to 2020) 1 and its corrigendum of 27 June 20142 and 18 April 20183, hereafter referred to as 'the Regulation'.

The general and specific objectives of the Creative Europe Programme and the priorities of the Culture Sub- programme are listed in Articles 3,4, 12 and 13 of the Regulation.

2. Objectives and priorities

The main objectives of the support for European cooperation projects are:

• -  To strengthen the capacity of the European cultural and creative sectors to operate transnationally and internationally and to promote the transnational circulation of cultural and creative works and transnational mobility of cultural and creative players, in particular artists;

• -  To contribute to audience development by engaging in new and innovative ways with audiences and improve access to cultural and creative works in the Union and beyond with a particular focus on children, young people, people with disabilities and underrepresented groups;

• -  To contribute to innovation and creativity in the field of culture, for instance through testing of new business models and promoting innovative spillovers on other sectors.

In order to achieve these objectives, the action focuses on the following priorities:

• - Promote the transnational mobility of artists and professionals with a view to enabling them to cooperate internationally and to internationalise their careers;
• - Strengthen audience development as a means of improving access to European cultural and creative works and tangible and intangible cultural heritage and extend access to cultural works to children, young people, people with disabilities and underrepresented groups;
• - Foster capacity building through innovative approaches to creation, develop and test new and innovative models of revenue, management and marketing for the cultural sectors, in particular as regards the digital shift , and developing new skills for cultural professionals;
• - Enhance intercultural dialogue, promote shared EU values and mutual understanding and respect for other cultures, thereby contributing to the social integration of migrants and refugees;
• - As a legacy to the European Year of Culture Heritage, raise awareness of common history and values, and reinforce a sense of belonging to a common European space.

3. Eligibility criteria

3.1. Eligible participants and countries

Eligible applicants (project leader/coordinator and partners) must be European cultural operators active in the cultural and creative sectors, as defined in article 2 of the Regulation No 1295/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Creative Europe Programme4, and legally established in one of the countries participating in the Culture Sub-programme.

Applications from legal entities established in one of the following country categories are eligible as long as all conditions referred to in Article 8 of Regulation No 1295/2013 establishing the Creative Europe Programme are met and the Commission has entered into negotiations with the country:

- The 28 EU Member States and overseas countries and territories which are eligible to participate in the Programme pursuant to Article 58 of Council Decision 2001/822/EC5;

- Acceding countries, candidate countries and potential candidates benefiting from a pre-accession strategy, in accordance with the general principles and general terms and conditions for the participation of those countries in EU programmes established in the respective Framework Agreements, Association Council Decisions or similar agreements;

- EFTA countries which are parties to the Agreement on the EEA, in accordance with the provisions of the EEA Agreement;

- The Swiss Confederation, on the basis of a bilateral agreement to be concluded with that country;

- Countries covered by the European Neighbourhood Policy in accordance with the procedures defined with those countries following the framework agreements providing for their participation in EU programmes.

An updated list of countries eligible to participate in Creative Europe (those fulfilling the conditions referred to in Article 8 of Regulation No 1295/2013) and countries that may become eligible in the near future (those that the Commission has started negotiations with) can be found at: https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/creative-europe/library/eligibility-organisations-non-eu-countries_en

The project leader must have had a legal personality for at least 2 years on the date of the deadline for submission of applications and be able to demonstrate its existence as a legal person.

Natural persons may not apply for a grant.

Applicants must not be in a situation that will exclude them from participation and/or from award as defined by the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the Union and its rules of application3.

3.2 Eligible projects

The Culture Sub-programme will not support any projects including pornographic or racist material or advocating violence.

Depending on the scale, needs, nature, objectives and priorities of the project, applicants must choose to apply under either Category 1 - Smaller scale cooperation projects OR under Category 2 - Larger scale cooperation projects.
Therefore, the project leader cannot submit two applications under this call for proposals.

In any event, a project can be submitted under one category only. Furthermore, eligible projects must:

- for both categories, have a maximum duration of 48 months (eligibility period);

- for smaller scale cooperation projects (Category 1), the EU grant requested is no more than EUR 200 000 representing maximum 60% of the total eligible costs; furthermore, the projects under Category 1 shall involve an eligible project leader and at least two other eligible partners having their legal seat in at least three different countries taking part in the Creative Europe – Culture Sub-programme. Either the project leader or one of the partners must have its legal seat in one of the eligible countries referred to herein;

- for larger scale cooperation projects (Category 2), the EU grant requested is no more than EUR 2.000.000 representing maximum 50% of the total eligible costs; furthermore, the projects under Category 2 shall involve an eligible project leader and at least five other eligible partners having their legal seat in at least six different countries taking part in the Creative Europe – Culture Sub-programme. Either the project leader or one of the partners must have its legal seat in one of the eligible countries referred to herein.

An organisation can be the project leader of only ONE ongoing supported category 2 project. This means that, in case of selection, a project leader of an ongoing category 2 project must ensure that there is no overlap of eligibility period between the ongoing supported project and the project applied for.

3.3 Eligible activities

Activities can start for both categories of projects between 1st September and 15th December of year 2019 at latest. In any event, activities cannot start before the signature by both parties of the grant agreement.

The maximum possible duration of a project is 48 months for both categories of projects.

4. Award Criteria

Eligible applicants will be assessed on the basis of the following criteria:

1. Relevance (30):
This criterion evaluates how the project implements the selected policy priority(ies) on the basis of a substantiated strategy.

2. Quality of the content and activities(30)
This criterion evaluates how the project will be implemented in practice (quality of the activities and deliverables, methodology) and how well related the activities are to the objectives of the project.

3. Communication and dissemination (20)
This criterion evaluates the project's approach to communicating its activities and results and to sharing knowledge and experiences within the sector and across borders. The aim is to maximise the impact of the project results at local, regional, national and European levels, and to ensure the sustainability of the impact beyond the project's lifetime.

4. Quality of the partnership (20)
This criterion evaluates the extent to which the structure and management of the project will ensure the effective implementation of the project.

In any event and for both categories of projects (smaller/larger scale cooperation projects), to be considered for funding, proposals must score a minimum quality threshold of 75/100 points.

5. Budget

The total budget for this call for proposals is estimated at EUR 44.659.800.

With a view to establishing an appropriate representation of smaller scale cooperation projects (Category 1), an indicative envelope of EUR 17.8 million is foreseen for this purpose (±40% of the overall budget of the action).

Considering the European Commission's policies and priorities, around 25% of the amount allocated to the smaller scale cooperation projects should go to qualitative projects focusing on the social integration of migrants and refugees.

The Agency reserves the right not to distribute all funds available.

6. Deadline for applications

Applications must be submitted to and received by the Executive Agency (EACEA) using the online application system and form (eForm) no later than 11/12/2018 at 12:00 CET/CEST (noon/Midday, Brussels time).

No other method of submission of an application will be accepted.
Applicants shall ensure that all the documents requested and mentioned in the eForms are provided.

7. Full details

The full text of the guidelines together with the application forms, can be found at the following Internet address:
https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/creative-europe/funding/support-european-cooperation-projects-2019_en

Applications must comply with all the terms of the guidelines and be submitted on the forms provided. For any further information please contact your Creative Europe Desk: