EFFEA Call #5

EFFEA Call 5 is a Europe‑wide funding opportunity administered by the European Festivals Association to support cross‑border festival residencies for emerging artists, open from 1 September 2026 to 3 November 2026 with residencies to take place during 2027. The call will award 50 residencies (40 Discovery grants of €8,000 and 10 Springboard grants of €15,000) to partnerships led by a festival and including at least three festivals from three eligible countries. Applications must be submitted by the leading festival using mandatory templates, including signed letters of intent and a detailed budget, and projects are assessed for artistic relevance, career impact, fair remuneration and longer‑term presentation opportunities. Results will be communicated in December 2026 and grants are paid in two instalments with the first instalment equal to 70 percent after contract signature.

What it funds

Scope in one line

Grants for cross-border festival residencies that develop and promote emerging artists through co-produced residencies across at least three festivals.

Key dates:Call open 01 September 2026. Deadline 03 November 2026 (23:59 Brussels time). Residencies must take place between 01 January 2027 and 31 December 2027. Results notified December 2026 ¹.

1. 1Total budget: €470,000
2. 250 residencies to be awarded
3. 3Implementation period: Jan–Dec 2027

Who can apply

Leading and partner applicants are festivals existing for at least one edition and registered on FestivalFinder.eu. Festivals from a long list of eligible countries can be leads; a small number of additional countries may participate as partners only. Proposed artists may be individuals or groups of any age and nationality, provided they have nationality or legal residence in an eligible country.

Eligibility highlights

1. 1Partnership must include at least 3 festivals in 3 eligible countries
2. 2Both lead and partner festivals must be listed on FestivalFinder.eu before submission
3. 3A festival may be lead for one application and partner on multiple others
4. 4Residency dates and costs must fall within the 2027 implementation period

Funding per residency:EFFEA Discovery: 40 grants of €8,000; EFFEA Springboard: 10 grants of €15,000. Total awards = 50 residencies, total programme budget €470,000.

Selection is by EFA eligibility check followed by jury evaluation. Applications require letters of intent from the artist and partner festivals and a detailed budget; applications are submitted by the leading festival via the EFFEA application portal EFFEA Call page ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Full call text, templates and submission portal available on the official opportunity page: ec.europa.eu

Summary and purpose

EFFEA Call #5 is the fifth open call of the European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists (EFFEA), an initiative of the European Festivals Association (EFA) co-funded by the European Union under the CREATIVE EUROPE strand CREA-CULT. The fund supports cross-border festival partnerships to host residencies for emerging artists, offering financial grants and an international festival network to develop and present artistic work. The call is open from 1 September 2026 to 3 November 2026, and the selected residencies must take place during 1 January 2027 to 31 December 2027. ¹

Project identifiers and high-level facts:Project acronym: EFFEA II. Grant agreement number: 101175876. Call/Identifier: CREA-CULT. Total funding available for this cascade call: €470,000. Deadline (Brussels time): 03 November 2026, 23:59. Implementation year for residencies: 2027. Deadline model: single-stage. Expected duration of participation: 1 year (January 2027 to December 2027). ¹

What is funded and award categories

EFFEA awards grants to festival-led residency partnerships. The call will select 50 residencies to support 50 emerging artists. There are two grant categories with fixed grant amounts:

1. 1EFFEA Discovery: 40 grants of €8,000 each. Intended for artists at early stages with high international potential.
2. 2EFFEA Springboard: 10 grants of €15,000 each. Intended for artists already established nationally and ready to develop internationally.

Eligible applicant types and partnership structure

The application must be submitted by a leading festival. The eligible applicant ecosystem and partnership requirements are specific to festivals and artists.

1. 1Eligible applicant types: festivals (as legal organisations). The call is designed for festival organisers and festival organisations. Implied supporting partners include festival networks and cultural organisations, but the formal applicant is the leading festival.
2. 2Consortium requirement: consortium. Each application must present a partnership with a minimum of three festivals from three eligible countries: one leading festival and at least two partner festivals. Partner festivals must be from different eligible countries (see Eligible Countries).
3. 3Festival minimum existence: both leading and partner festivals must have existed for at least one edition.
4. 4Festival registration requirement: both leading and partner festivals must be registered on FestivalFinder.eu before submission.

Eligible artists and disciplines

Artists proposed for EFFEA residencies may be individual artists, companies, collectives, ensembles or groups of any age and nationality, provided they have nationality or legal residence in one of the eligible countries (listed below). The EFFEA definition of emerging artist is not age-based but based on novelty to programmers/audiences and international breakthrough potential.

Eligible artistic disciplines include:Architecture, Ballet, Contemporary Dance, Circus, Design/Applied Arts, Digital Arts, Film, Folklore and Folk Arts, Heritage, Interdisciplinary, Literature, Music, Opera, Street Art, Theatre, Photography/Video, Puppetry, Sculpture, Painting.

Geographic eligibility (Eligible Countries and special rules)

Leading festivals and artists must have their official addresses in one of the following eligible countries: Albania, Armenia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Montenegro, Moldova, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Tunisia, Ukraine.

Festivals with official addresses in Israel, Palestine, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom are allowed to participate only as partner festivals. Artists from these partner-only countries can be proposed by leading festivals.

Selection, evaluation and eligibility checks

Initial eligibility checks are performed by the EFA team. All eligible proposals are evaluated by the independent EFFEA Jury, composed of members with diversified profiles across disciplines, geographies and backgrounds. Key selection assumptions and criteria include:

1. 1Relevance: the residency is relevant for the artist, the festivals and audiences.
2. 2Impact: the residency will have a measurable impact on the artist’s career.
3. 3Market and sustainability: the residency offers presentation opportunities and a market for the artist beyond the residency period.
4. 4Fair remuneration: the budget demonstrates fair and adequate remuneration for the artist (stay, rehearsal time, fees, etc.).
5. 5Thematic considerations: attention to diversity, sustainability (ecological, cultural, artistic, economic and social), digital tools and inclusion will be positively considered in evaluation.

Application process and required documents

Applications must be submitted online via the EFFEA website and cannot be submitted by any other route. The leading festival completes the online form and uploads mandatory documents. Important practical notes: the EFFEA online application form does not include a save-as-draft function, so applicants are advised to prepare all information and files in advance.

Documents and templates required (mandatory):Applicants must upload and sign all required documents. The following official templates are mandatory and available for download on the EFFEA application page: Application form_EFFEA Call5.docx, Letter of intent with the emerging artist Call5.docx, Letter of intent with the partner festivals - Discovery Call5.docx, Letter of intent with the partner festivals - Springboard Call5.docx, Budget form template Call5.xlsx. The leading festival must provide general information about the organisation, detailed information and biographies for the proposed artist(s), general information about partner festivals, motivation for the residency and partnership, signed letters of intent (artist and partner festivals), and the detailed budget form.

Submission method, stages and timeline

Call type:open single-stage call. Submissions are accepted online only. The selection process has at least two operational stages: eligibility screening by EFA and evaluation by the independent EFFEA Jury. Results notification occurs after jury evaluation.

Funding modality, amounts and nature of support

Primary funding type:grant (cascade funding mechanism). Total envelope for the call: €470,000. Individual grant amounts are fixed per category (€8,000 for Discovery, €15,000 for Springboard). The funding is monetary and intended to cover the costs of residency activity, artist remuneration and related expenses as specified in the budget template. The opportunity also provides non-monetary support: curated network access, capacity-building seminars, networking sessions, visibility and festival presentation opportunities during and after the residency.

Application requirements, constraints and special conditions

Residency start and end dates must fall entirely within the implementation period (not earlier than 01 January 2027 and not later than 31 December 2027). Any costs incurred outside this period cannot be included in the EFFEA budget. A festival can apply once as a leading festival (one lead application) but may appear multiple times as a partner festival across different applications. Artists who previously received an EFFEA Discovery grant may still be eligible to receive a Springboard grant in Call #5. All budget submissions must follow the mandatory budget template and demonstrate fair remuneration practices.

Beneficiary scope and partners

EFFEA Call #5 is implemented by the European Festivals Association with 15 EFFEA Platform Members across Europe and associated partners from European cultural networks. Platform Members listed include organisations in Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Malta, Romania, Serbia, Sweden and Ukraine. Associated partners include Culture Action Europe, European Music Council, Pearle* Live Performance Europe, Circostrada, IETM, On the Move, European Dance Development Network and Művészetek Völgye.

Application form structure and guidance for applicants (template outline)

The application form and required templates are provided on the EFFEA application page. The form does not allow draft saving; therefore applicants should prepare content offline. The required uploads and sections are:

1. 1General information about the leading festival/organisation (legal name, address, festival history/editions, FestivalFinder registration confirmation).
2. 2Details of partner festivals (names, countries, FestivalFinder registration status, short descriptions of their activities and roles in the residency).
3. 3Information about the proposed artist(s): biography, artistic CV, links to work (text and/or audiovisual), nationality or legal residence documentation in eligible country.
4. 4Residency description: objectives, planned activities, expected outcomes, intended audience engagement and longer-term outlook for artist’s career development.
5. 5Implementation timeline: residency start/end dates (must be within 2027), schedule of events/visits/productions across partner festivals.
6. 6Letters of intent: mandatory signed letters from the emerging artist and from each partner festival. Use the mandatory templates for Discovery or Springboard as applicable.
7. 7Budget form: mandatory Budget form template Call5.xlsx with a transparent breakdown demonstrating fair remuneration for the artist and eligible costs.
8. 8Signed declarations and any requested administrative data required by the online form.

Application stages and success metrics

Although the call is single-stage (applicants submit once), the administrative process effectively includes at least two decision stages: eligibility verification by EFA and qualitative jury evaluation. Applications passing eligibility are subject to jury scoring and selection. Successful applicants are notified by email in December 2026 and residencies commence after signature of the grant agreement.

Success rates:the call will fund 50 residencies. The published documentation does not disclose total expected number of applicants, historical acceptance rates, or guaranteed success probabilities. Therefore an exact success rate cannot be computed from the available information.

Co-funding and budget rules

The call documentation does not explicitly state a co-funding requirement from applicants. Applicants must, however, use the mandatory budget template and provide a coherent budget showing planned use of the grant and any other financial contributions. Costs outside the official implementation period must be excluded. The budget must justify fair remuneration for artists at all stages (stay, rehearsal, fees). If co-funding or matched funding is needed for specific project costs, it should be clearly indicated in the budget, but no mandatory co‑funding percentage is specified in the publicly available call text.

How to apply and where to find templates

Start applications via the EFFEA application page (www.effea.eu/application-form) and ensure both the leading and partner festivals are registered on FestivalFinder.eu. Mandatory templates (application form docx, letters of intent for artist and partner festivals for both Discovery and Springboard, and budget form xlsx) are available for download on the EFFEA application page. The online form must be completed and all documents uploaded and signed before the deadline. The application portal does not save drafts.

Practical tips and recommended preparation

• Register your festival on FestivalFinder.eu early and confirm registration status for every partner festival.
• Prepare artist biographies, audiovisual links and signed letters of intent well before starting the online form (the form lacks a save function).
• Complete the budget template precisely and ensure proposed artist remuneration is clear and fair.
• Plan residency dates within the 2027 implementation window and reflect the timeline in the application form.
• Use the mandatory templates for letters of intent and budget; incomplete or missing mandatory templates risk ineligibility.
• Attend the scheduled EFFEA info, networking and Q&A sessions in September and October 2026 to clarify questions and seek partners.

Application evaluation timeline and notifications

Applications are evaluated in November 2026 by the EFFEA Jury after an initial eligibility check by the EFA team. Applicants are notified by email in December 2026. The public announcement of results also occurs in December 2026. Residencies may take place at any time during 2027 following signature of the grant agreement.

Contact points, sessions and additional resources

EFFEA organises a series of online sessions (info, networking, Q&A) in September and October 2026 to support applicants. The EFFEA website (www.effea.eu) and the EFFEA application page host call documents and templates. The official call listing and details are available via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal opportunity page. Links to registration for sessions are provided on the EFFEA pages. ¹

Answers to structured categorisation questions

Eligible Applicant Types:Festivals (festival organisers and festival organisations) as leading applicants. Partner festivals as part of the required partnership. The scheme is aimed at cultural organisations (festivals) rather than businesses, individuals or research institutions. Artists are beneficiaries of the residencies but not the formal applicant. Nonprofit festival organisations, public festival authorities and private festival organisers that meet the FestivalFinder and edition existence requirements are eligible.

Funding Type:Grant (cascade funding mechanism). The fund distributes fixed grants for residencies (€8,000 and €15,000 depending on the category).

Consortium Requirement:Consortium. Each application must be led by one festival and include at least two partner festivals from two other eligible countries (minimum three festivals from three eligible countries in total).

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):Primarily EU and neighbouring countries listed as eligible. Leading festivals and artists must be based in: Albania, Armenia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Montenegro, Moldova, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Tunisia, Ukraine. Partner-only festival participation permitted from Israel, Palestine, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom; artists from these partner-only countries may be proposed.

Target Sector:Culture and the arts across multiple disciplines: performing arts (dance, theatre, circus, opera), music, visual arts, digital arts, film, architecture, design/applied arts, heritage, literature, photography/video, puppetry, street art, and interdisciplinary projects.

Mentioned Countries:Explicitly mentioned eligible countries for leading festivals and artists: Albania; Armenia; Austria; Belgium; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Bulgaria; Croatia; Cyprus; Czech Republic; Denmark; Estonia; Finland; France; Germany; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; Iceland; Ireland; Italy; Kosovo; Latvia; Liechtenstein; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Malta; Montenegro; Moldova; Netherlands; North Macedonia; Norway; Poland; Portugal; Romania; Serbia; Slovakia; Slovenia; Spain; Sweden; Tunisia; Ukraine. Partner-only festival countries: Israel; Palestine; Switzerland; Turkey; United Kingdom. Also referenced: Platform member countries including Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Malta, Romania, Serbia, Sweden, Ukraine.

Project Stage:Development and career advancement stage for artists: residencies intended to support artistic development, presentation, network-building and international career progression. This is beyond initial concept ideation but focused on creation, rehearsal, testing, presentation and market development (development/validation/demonstration of artistic work).

Funding Amount:Total envelope for the call: €470,000. Individual awards: Discovery grants: €8,000 each for 40 residencies (total €320,000). Springboard grants: €15,000 each for 10 residencies (total €150,000).

Application Type:Open competitive call with a single-stage submission. Applications must be submitted online via the EFFEA application portal (EFFEA website).

Nature of Support:Primarily monetary grants to the leading festival for the residency (money). Additionally, non-monetary support includes network access, seminars (intake/outtake), capacity building, visibility and programming opportunities (non-monetary services).

Application Stages:1 (single-stage submission) formally; however, operationally two steps occur: eligibility screening by the EFA team and evaluation by the EFFEA Jury. Applicants are notified after the jury step.

Success Rates:Not specified. The call will fund 50 residencies, but the total number of expected or submitted applications is not published; therefore an overall success rate cannot be computed from the available information.

Co-funding Requirement:No explicit mandatory co-funding percentage is stated in the published call text. Applicants must submit a detailed budget using the mandatory template; any additional funding sources or in-kind contributions should be clearly declared in the budget but are not presented as a mandatory match in the public call text.

Final summary — what this opportunity is about

EFFEA Call #5 is a targeted funding opportunity for festivals to jointly produce artist residencies that boost the international careers of emerging artists. The call finances co-produced residencies across a minimum of three festivals located in different eligible countries and combines monetary grants (€8,000 or €15,000 per residency) with non-monetary advantages such as visibility, network connections and capacity-building seminars. Applications must be submitted online by a leading festival, include mandatory letters of intent and a detailed budget using official templates, and ensure all residency activity falls within 2027. The selection prioritises artistic relevance, measurable career impact for the artist, sustainable longer-term presentation opportunities and fair remuneration. Applicants should prepare all documents in advance, register festivals on FestivalFinder.eu, attend EFFEA information and networking sessions, and submit completed online applications by 3 November 2026. ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Primary source: European Platforms for the promotion of emerging artists — EFFEA Call #5 entry on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and EFFEA application site (EFFEA.eu). Full call information and templates available at the EFFEA application page EFFEA application page and the EU portal opportunity page EU Funding & Tenders Portal opportunity.

EFFEA Call 5 is the fifth open call of the European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists, a European Union co funded initiative of the European Festivals Association that supports cross border festival collaborations to give emerging artists international visibility and development opportunities.[3][5] The call is open from 1 September 2026 to 3 November 2026 at 23:59 Brussels time, and the supported residencies are expected to take place during 2027.[3][5]

What the call is about

The funding supports partnerships of festivals from different countries that work together around a residency for an emerging artist, collective, ensemble, company, or group.[3][5] The aim is to strengthen artistic development, audience reach, and longer term international career prospects through collaboration across borders.[2][3]

Funding structure

The call expects about 50 residencies in total, with 40 Discovery grants and 10 Springboard grants, involving around 150 festivals across the partnership network.[3]

Who can apply

Applications must be submitted by the leading festival on behalf of the partnership; the call is not designed for direct applications by artists.[3][5] Each project must bring together at least three festivals from three eligible countries, meaning one leading festival and at least two partner festivals.[5]

• Leading and partner festivals must have organised at least one festival edition.[5]
• Leading and partner festivals must be registered on FestivalFinder.eu before submission.[5]
• A festival may apply once as a leading festival and may participate in multiple applications as a partner festival.[5]
• No membership of the European Festivals Association is required to apply.[5]

Eligible applicants and artists

Leading festivals and artists must have their official address or legal residence in one of the eligible countries listed in the call, and artists may be individuals, collectives, companies, ensembles, or groups of any age and nationality, provided they have nationality or legal residence in an eligible country.[3][5] Festivals from Israel, Palestine, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom may participate only as partner festivals, and artists from those countries may also be proposed.[3][5]

Eligible disciplines

The call covers a broad set of artistic fields, including Architecture, Ballet, Contemporary Dance, Circus, Design and Applied Arts, Digital Arts, Film, Folklore and Folk Arts, Heritage, Interdisciplinary, Literature, Music, Opera, Street Art, Theatre, Photography and Video, Puppetry, Sculpture, and Painting.[3][5]

Conditions and requirements

• The residency must start no earlier than 1 January 2027 and end no later than 31 December 2027.[5]
• Residencies may take place at any time within the implementation period after the grant agreement is signed.[5]
• Submitted proposals are first checked for eligibility by the EFA team and then assessed by the EFFEA Jury.[5]
• Selection focuses on artistic relevance, impact on the artists career, longer term market opportunities, fair remuneration, and alignment with themes such as diversity, sustainability, digital tools, and inclusion.[5]
• The leading festival must upload and sign all required documents, including the budget form and the letters of intent with the artists and partner festivals.[3][5]
• The application file includes general information about the lead organisation, artist biographies and links, partner festival information, a motivation statement, letters of intent, and a detailed budget template.[3][5]

Payment and financial notes

The grant is paid in two instalments, and the first instalment equals 70 percent of the grant and is transferred to the leading festival after the signed contract is received at the beginning of the residency.[5] The available official sources confirm the total grant amounts and the first instalment structure, but do not provide additional cost share or co financing rules in the excerpts reviewed.[3][5]

Timeline

Practical assessment for applicants

This opportunity is best suited to festival networks that already have international contacts and can demonstrate a clear artistic residency concept with a strong public and professional value.[2][5] Successful applications will normally show a credible partnership across three countries, a clear role for each festival, a realistic 2027 delivery plan, and a budget that reflects fair artist remuneration and well defined presentation outcomes.[5]