Convenor: Philip Holyman (Little Earthquake)
Participants: John (The Drum); Miguel (BE Festival); Gareth Nicholls; Jane Packman; Abigail (Foursight); James Yarker; Ian Craddock; Lucy Poulson; Frank; Tracey Briggs; Nick Sweeting; Johnny O’Hanlon
Notes:
Possible sharing of resources (sets, props, costumes, equipment); sharing of tasks (marketing, get-in labour, FoH, bars, stage crew)
The Australian model of co-producing / sharing resources across massive geographical distances
Look for SIMPLE ways to help each other out.
Advertise items/services on Midpoint website (with a model like Freecycle / Setexchange)
Don’t be afraid of calling on big organisations to ask for their help
Miguel thinks people are very generous in the Midlands in this respect.
Think about the cost or insurance implications of this kind of exchange.
Need to create long-term partnerships to build this support network.
Is it possible to pool resources to pay for someone to do these jobs at a proportionally lower cost?
Get help with documentation / evaluation / audience research and info gathering
Placements and internships – Jane Packman can provide link to De Montfort Uni, from where she was matched with an intern student.
Sharing of skills between companies – skills exchange
Place a value on the skill being contributed.
Scheduling of projects will help companies to determine when they need help and when they can give it.
Set up a calendar to co-ordinate everyone’s projects
You only know what skills/equipment someone has available if you have seen their skills or know what they have in stock.
- lists on sections of company websites?
Some people might be unwilling to do this so that they are not helping their competition.
Encourage the big players to advertise things they cannot hang on to when a production ends
Be proactive and ASK them if there are things of theirs which you can have.
Links to amateur companies (who always have lots of things in storage, and lots of space to store them in)
The ethical value of this kind of recycling.
Knowing what projects you’re doing well in advance helps you to coordinate this kind of sharing in the future.
How do you let people know about the skills people have to swap?
- word of mouth at gatherings
- discretionary drawing-upon of skills
- build-up of in-kind support over time
Need to safeguard people against being exploited and against the assumption that they are always there to work for free.
Looking beyond the arts community
Cumulative bargaining power of a group of artists / collective buying – split print runs
Use of under-utilised space:
What is a reasonable rate for venues to expect to charge?
What is a reasonable rate for companies to expect to pay?
If venues can be guaranteed solid audience attendance, they can do things in return for artists.
Supporting other people’s work keeps money circulating within the arts community.
Explore ways to spread the word about each other’s work – up against fear of competition.
Lack of a website or ongoing forum to encourage ongoing conversations. A hub – a singular place for people to look for / submit information.
A Midpoint calendar of what’s happening when (for everyone to refer to)
Helping to lift the veil of secrecy and be more open about what you are working on.
