ALCHEMY FILM & MOVING IMAGE RESIDENCY 2018
Our autumn residency programme will take place October-November 2018 and is offered for artists working with film and moving image, in partnership with the cultural retreat centre Café Tissardmine, on the edge of the Sahara Desert in Morocco. Aimed at artists who wish to develop their skills and understanding of moving image practice, this group residency offers a partially structured residency experience aimed at stimulating new ways of thinking and experimentation in practice. No fixed outcomes are expected, though there will be an opportunity to show any films completed at the ninth edition of Alchemy Film & Moving Image Festival in Scotland, April 2019, subject to approval by our programming team. You can read about the experience of our previous residency participants.
Residency Programme Dates
Saturday 13 Oct (arrival day) to Tuesday 6th November (departure day) – 25 days
7 to 8 places are available on this year’s residency.
How to Apply
Applications to the residency are now closed.
The deadline for applications is midnight Sunday 17th June 2018.
Successful applicants will be notified by Wed 4 July 2018.
About the residencies
The magnificent desert landscape surrounding Café Tissardmine, situated on the edge of a remote village in the Moroccan Sahara, offers an excellent environment for reflective practice. Its dry, minimal and endlessly extensive landscape hides a deceptive complexity and is often penetratingly silent. Closely integrated with the fascinating local Berber culture, the centre is close to the Erg Chebbi dunes of the Sahara. The pervading qualities of light and shadow are truly remarkable.
The aim of these residencies is to provide a supportive environment to develop your skills and knowledge in experimental film and artists moving image practice. Through a series of tutorial-based discussion sessions (three each week) we will explore different approaches to artists’ film from historical and contemporary perspectives. By screening and discussing key works, we aim to facilitate an ongoing creative dialogue between film-making, film-watching, and the stunning environment of the desert landscape itself.
Opportunities for participants to share their work in progress will happen throughout the residency, creating an open and supportive dialogue of peer support throughout the residency period, deepening creative connections between participants. Surrounding this loose structure, there will be plenty of time to develop your own work and to fully experience the environment and culture.
The residencies and workshops will be led by the Creative Director of Alchemy Film & Arts, Dr Richard Ashrowan, a Scotland based curator and filmmaker. Richard has directed eight editions of Alchemy Film and Moving Image Festival in Scotland and was curator of Scotland’s national presentation at the Venice Biennale in 2017.
Residency Fees
The residency is operated on a non-commercial cost covering basis, and is financially supported by Alchemy Film & Arts in order to keep fees low. The residency fee is 800 Euro (around £700 British Pounds), to be paid by the artist. This fee includes individual accommodation across a combination of rooms and luxury Berber tents, with full board (3 meals each day) for 25 days. Full-time tutorial and mentoring support is funded by Alchemy Film & Arts.
A deposit of 200 Euro will be required within three weeks of accepting a place on the residency. The remaining balance of 600 Euro is payable four weeks in advance of the residency start date.
You will be responsible for funding and organising your own travel (nearest airports are Fes and Marrakech), your own travel insurance and any visa requirements particular to your country of origin.
We do not have external funding for this project available, so we regret we are unable to offer assistance with the fees, flights, production costs or other subsistence. Typically, artists source funding by applying to their national arts funding bodies, personal fundraising, or through academic institutional support. Formal letters of invitation can be provided for successful applicants to assist in this process.
Eligibility
* You can be at any stage of your career and do not necessarily need to be working predominantly with the moving image.
* You will ideally have made at least some moving image work already. As a minimum you will need own camera equipment and at least a basic knowledge of how to use it.
* The programme may best suit early to mid career artists who are seeking to develop their knowledge and skills within an environment of learning and discussion. More experienced artists are still welcome to apply.
* Not open to people under 21 years of age.
* Open to artists based in any country.
* Artist duo’s and partnerships are welcome to apply.
Just fill out this form to apply.
About Alchemy Film & Arts
Founded in 2010 and based in Scotland, Alchemy Film & Arts celebrates experimental film and artists’ moving image culture. Its annual Alchemy Film and Moving Image Festival is one of the most important international festivals of experimental film and artists’ moving image, with its eigth edition 3-7 May, 2018.
Alchemy Film & Arts also engages in developmental projects for experimental film and artists’ moving image, including artists’ filmmaking residencies, filmmaking symposia, international and rural touring programmes, and community filmmaking initiatives.
Alchemy Film & Arts is a registered non-profit Scottish Charity: SC042142.
www.alchemyfilmfestival.org.uk
Twitter: @alchemyfilmfest
FB: www.facebook.com/alchemyfilmfestival
About Café Tissardmine
Cafe Tissardmine is a cultural retreat in the Moroccan Sahara, a place of tranquility, inspiration, and discovery. Situated in Morocco at the edge of Erg Chebbi, one of the largest sand dunes in the Sahara, Café Tissardmine provides a creative oasis for artists and travellers amongst the desert’s beauty, grandeur and stillness and the culture of the indigenous Berber people. It was created by Australian artist, Karen Hadfield, and local Berber Youssef Bouchedor.
For more on Café Tissardmine, its environment and accommodation, see:
www.cafetissardmine.com
