Money
Formerly the Budgets section, this area covers everything from cash flow management to budgeting for your production. Find the financial resources you need to keep your projects on track.
Budgeting Basics
A crucial part of any producer's job is managing the overall production budget. Indie producers need to take in many considerations beyond venue, artists fees, and tech. Insurance, playwright's royalties, accessibility costs, set transport, and publicity are just a few considerations that are often overlooked.
Building Your Budget
You will likely go through multiple drafts of a budget until you find one that will meet all the needs of your production and is also feasible.
Managing a Budget
This page breaks down the step-by-step process and nitty-gritty of budgeting. This gives you practical tools and techniques to create, track, and adjust budgets effectively. Whether you're managing personal finances or business expenses, this section provides the structure and strategies to keep your numbers in check.
Cash Flow
While a budget is a tool to plan how much money you will spend and make, a cashflow helps you manage when you have money coming in and out. It can help you predict if or when you may run out of money so you can plan to negotiate delayed payment terms to vendors (the people you pay), or ask for a loan from the bank or generous family member or friend.
Federal Funding
If you are applying for grants in Canada, you have several different options depending on where you live. This page lists different funding opportunities for the arts provided through the federal government of Canada.
Provincial Funding
If you are an artist living or working in Canada, public funding for the arts is available to you through your provincial government depending on which province you reside in.
Municipal Funding
In addition to provincial and federal government grants, some municipalities have arts funding programs for residents of their community. You may want to look at their different programs when applying for grants. For example, the City of Toronto also has a funding body for the arts called the Toronto Arts Council (TAC), and artists from Toronto can apply for funding from the TAC in addition to the Ontario Arts Council and Canada Council for the Arts.
Final Reports
When you are awarded a grant for your project, your notification letter will include a date on which this report is due (usually a few weeks after the project end date), and what information they will need to be included in it. By accepting the grant, you are committing to provide the required reporting at the end of your project. In some cases, funders will hold back a small portion of the grant (10%), to be released once they have received your final report.
CADAC
Canadian Arts Data/Donees sur les arts au Canada (CADAC), is a national database for tracking statistical and financial information for arts organizations. CADAC is a required part of the process for arts organizations applying for operating grants. Arts organizations making applications to multiple funding agencies submit their financial and statistical information in a single format, to a single source.
Private Funders
If you eligible for a foundation's grant, the first step is to get in touch with someone at the foundation to talk about your interest in the grant. Funding in the private sector is reliant on the personal connection developed between new applicants and the representatives of the foundation.
Grant Writing
Grant writing is the process of crafting compelling proposals to secure funding from government agencies, foundations, or other funding bodies. Whether you're seeking support for a project, program, or organization, successful grant writing requires clarity, strategy, and a deep understanding of the funder's priorities. This guide will help you navigate the essentials from identifying the right opportunities to writing persuasive applications so you can confidently pursue the resources you need to bring your vision to life.
Crowdfunding
In essence, online fundraising is a way to raise a chunk of money to fund a larger project. It takes the risk off of one person and helps disperse the risk into tiny, bite-sized pieces. This approach greatly lowers risk, so “I need $3,000!” can become “I need $30 from 100 people” or "I need $5 from 600 people". Online fundraising disperses the total risk into a more manageable figure.
Fundraising Events
Fundraisers can take all different shapes. They can be large scale, or simple to execute. You can have many of attendees, or it can be an intimate gathering of people.
Corporate Sponsorship
A corporate sponsorship is different from a donation. Your work has value: not just the value it has for the community and audiences, but for the businesses you are approaching. Because of who you are and the unique things you are doing, you have access to niche groups and audiences who businesses want to reach.
GST and HST
GST (or Goods and Services Tax) is a tax that Canadians pay on most goods and services. Most provinces combined their GST and PST (Provincial Sales Tax) into what we call HST (Harmonized Sales Tax). Businesses or self-employed individuals who make more than $30,000 are required to charge GST/HST to their customers and report that to the CRA. However, you can recover the GST/HST that you paid on expenses related to your business.