McKnight Fellowships for Dancers: Guidelines

McKnight Dancer Fellowships: Application Overview Transcript

Speaker: Dana Kassel, Program Director

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Dana Kassel: Hello, my name is Dana Kassel and I'm the program director for the McKnight Choreographer Fellowships. This video will give a brief overview of the application process for the McKnight Choreographer Fellowships[cite: 60]. This program awards three unrestricted cash fellowships of $25,000 to Minnesota choreographers who are beyond the emerging stage of their career[cite: 61].

To apply, go to our website[cite: 62]. There is an intent to apply step in the fall that we encourage you to submit[cite: 62]. This is a simple contact form, and we ask you to share information about any performances you will have during the season so the panel can attend when possible[cite: 63]. The full application portal will be open in mid-January[cite: 64].

The final deadline for submitting an application is seen here[cite: 65]. [On-screen: Application deadline date] This is a firm deadline[cite: 65]. The application website turns off at exactly 3 p.m. on deadline day and you will not be able to access your application after that time[cite: 66, 67]. We very strongly recommend starting your application early, allowing plenty of time to complete all the steps and submitting well before the deadline[cite: 68].

Go to our website to apply and begin by reading the guidelines completely and carefully[cite: 69]. When you're ready to begin your application, click on the red "Apply Now" button on the guidelines page[cite: 70]. This will take you to the application website[cite: 71]. You don't have to complete your application in one sitting[cite: 71]. You can work on your application and click "Save" to continue at a later time[cite: 72]. Follow the instructions on each page and refer to the guidelines on our website as you work[cite: 73].

When you have completed the last step, you will see this final message and you will also receive an email confirmation[cite: 74]. To apply, you do need a computer and online access[cite: 75]. If you do not have a personal computer or internet access, go to your local public library, or to Springboard for the Arts, an artist resource center in St Paul[cite: 76].

Here’s what you'll be asked to include in your application:

* Basic contact information[cite: 77].

* Your name, address, phone and email address[cite: 78].

* An artist statement of 7,000 characters or less, which includes spaces[cite: 78]. This is approximately two pages[cite: 79].

Work on this artist statement in a word processing program and when it's complete, cut and paste it into the box on the application form[cite: 79, 80]. Your artist statement can take any of several directions depending on what is most important for you to convey to the panel[cite: 80, 81]. You may choose to write about your background, the development of your work, your particular interest as an artist, your future direction, or pertinent details about your dance form[cite: 81, 82].

The narrative is also a space to explain your work in terms of the application criteria and to help define the artistic excellence in your work[cite: 82, 83]. Do keep in mind that the artist narrative is not a project proposal[cite: 83]. You may, if you wish, talk about your plans for the fellowship funds, but it is not required[cite: 84].

Next, add your artistic resume[cite: 85]. You will upload this PDF file to the application site[cite: 85]. Two pages maximum with 12 point font[cite: 86]. Your resume should demonstrate a history of sustained dance work and show that you are clearly beyond the emerging stage of your career[cite: 86, 87]. Keep in mind that this means a minimum of eight years of dance work outside of any school or college program[cite: 87, 88].

A very important part of your application is the video work sample[cite: 89]. You'll need to create a video that includes a minimum of three video samples from three different works[cite: 89, 90]. The maximum number of works you may include is six[cite: 90]. This should be one continuously-running video with a maximum running time of 20 minutes[cite: 91, 92]. We recommend adding on-screen titles that give the title of the work, the premiere date, and the choreographer included[cite: 92, 93]. The title can appear at the bottom corner for just a few moments at the beginning of each clip[cite: 93, 94].

Once you have created your video, you'll upload it to a video sharing service[cite: 94]. For complete instructions, please visit our guidelines page[cite: 95]. Then on your application form, you will insert the video link[cite: 96]. If your video is password protected, include the password where instructed[cite: 97, 98]. We request that you make your video downloadable so that we can streamline our viewing process[cite: 98, 99].

If this is not possible, you can contact us via email to arrange another method for us to download your work sample[cite: 100, 101]. Next, you'll add your work sample information[cite: 101]. First, tell us how many excerpts you will have in your application work sample and then the appropriate number of boxes will appear[cite: 101, 102]. You'll input information about each excerpt—the title, date of premiere, the length of the excerpt, and the length of the complete work, and the dancers or company involved[cite: 102, 103].

There's also space for any additional notes you may want to provide, such as reasons for sharing this excerpt or what the panel should be looking for[cite: 103, 104]. Please note that if you change the number of excerpts you want to include after you have begun entering the information on the application, your work sample information will disappear[cite: 104, 105]. We suggest drafting this information in a Word document and cutting and pasting once you are ready[cite: 105, 106].

Next you will be asked for a short bio of 250 words or less and one or two photos[cite: 106, 107]. These will not be seen by the panel[cite: 108]. If you are selected as a fellow, we will use them for publicity purposes[cite: 108, 109]. For our records, we will ask you to provide basic demographic information[cite: 109, 110]. This is also not seen by the panel[cite: 111].

The last step of the application is to provide your electronic signature[cite: 111, 112]. By doing so, you verify that you have read the guidelines completely, you will only apply to one McKnight Fellowship program this year, you fit all of the eligibility requirements, and everything you have submitted is accurate[cite: 112, 113].

Keep in mind that all of the materials you submit should speak to the criteria for the Fellowship: A Minnesota-based choreographer who is clearly beyond the emerging stage and has created a substantial body of work over time[cite: 113, 114]. We offer several webinars each year about the Fellowship program and application process[cite: 115]. You can receive information about these and other updates by joining our mailing list at the bottom of our website[cite: 116]. If you have any questions, you can visit our website for more details or reach us via email[cite: 116].

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