Impakt
Lauwerecht 10
3514 BB Utrecht
The Netherlands
The Impakt Festival is the annual culmination of Impakt’s activities as an organisation that focuses on critical media culture: a five-day, multi-media festival with film screenings, conferences, talks, performances, exhibitions and presentations. Founded in 1988, the Impakt Festival takes place every autumn in the city of Utrecht, The Netherlands. Curatorial proposals can be submitted by curators individually or collectively and should revolve around a single, main theme. There are two options for this call:
You may propose a programme revolving around the themes Post Truth?, The Interface and Free, value without money.
More information on these themes is available on our website.
You may choose your own subject but the proposal needs to fit with the general mission of Impakt:
Impakt presents critical and creative views on contemporary media culture. We examine issues around society, digital culture, and media from various angles and within a range of disciplines in the arts, science, and technology. In our festival we analyse how technological developments influence society. We show how artists respond to the risks and chances the developments bring.
Impakt strongly calls for proposals that display an affinity with media culture, an interdisciplinary approach and a wide spectrum of views—avoiding an all-too-singular stance on the politics of the issues raised. We ask for proposals that include thought-provoking approaches and original formats. The nature of proposed programmes and subjects can range from: speculative futurist concepts, popular culture, new ideas about our digital landscape, the Internet, offstream culture in visual arts and the innovative and alternative use of technology.
Submission dates deadline: July 15, 2017
Notification selected proposals: August 1, 2017
How to apply?
The proposal consists of three elements:
–Outline of the theme
Your application should expand on the suggested topic and possible sub-themes. This section outlines the theme’s relevance, your general approach to it and suggestions as to how it can be addressed in a festival exploring media culture, arts and technology. It should express why your theme is topical, in need of exploration, and how it may contribute to the current discourse in the media, popular culture, academia and the arts.
–A curatorial proposal for the programme
A proposal can contain suggestions for a full festival programme, including screenings, a conference, an exhibition, performance and other alternative formats. It is also possible to send proposals for just one programme element of the festival, for instance a screening programme or a programme with panels and talks. The proposal should include a preliminary listings of artists, speakers, collaborations with other organisations, et cetera. Curators are encouraged to add new innovative programme formats and out-of-the-box approaches.
–A recent, proper CV of the curator(s) involved in the application.
In addition to these mandatory elements you have the option to add:
–Ideas for events and projects leading up to the festival. This may contain additional concepts for presentations, subthemes, experimental events, local connections and residencies.
Submission requirements
Please note the following.
–A proposal contains a minimum of 3 pages, and ideally has about 10 pages (pictures and CVs not included).
–Impakt handles submissions in discretion. Listed artists and speakers need not be confirmed. Where possible or relevant, do state your existing connections to the listed artists, collaborators or guests to outline the feasibility of the suggested plans.
Please check our website for additional information and how to apply.
About Impakt
Past Impakt Festival themes have included: Capitalism Catch-22 (2013), Soft Machines (2014), The Future of the Past (2015) and Authenticity? (2016). More details about previous festival themes can be found here.
The 2017 Impakt Festival takes place from October 25 to 29, 2017 and is themed Haunted Machines & Wicked Problems.
