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| "How Philly Moves" photo shoot (Photo: JJ Tiziou |
Freelancers are more
likely to start their own projects than company dancers. While those
with company contracts spend much of their time focusing their energy towards getting promoted, freelancers often have extra time to flex their creativity muscles. For many years, I have been focused on simulating the season of an annually contracted dancer through my freelance
career. As I traveled the world from company to company, I watched many
of my other freelancing friends create their own projects. Well, now
that I've settled down in Philly for the past 3 months, I've had more
time to develop my own ideas and see where they take me. In a handful of coming
posts, I'll be sharing more about a project that I am creating. But for
the time being, I'd like to discuss fiscal sponsorship, an important
aspect of raising funds for your own projects.
When
I first started brainstorming ideas to give myself a platform to work
more on my choreography, I knew that I would need to navigate the tricky
technique of fundraising. I don't like asking people for financial
support and have always had great pride in my ability to do things on my
own. But when it comes to major arts projects, very few artists can
execute their plans without a solid base of funding. Most people's first
fundraising thought darts straight into the land of crowd-sourcing
(like Kickstarter, Indiegogo, and Rockethub, which I will discuss in a future blog). While this method of fundraising can be a great supplemental tool, there are many more
strategic and fruitful ways to fund a project.
Initially, the
people that are going to provide the base of funding for your work will be your friends and
family, as well as people that have shown previous interest in you as an artist. But without the
ability to offer tax-deductible donations, you are unlikely to field
sponsorship beyond $100. Most people don't mind giving a small amount of
money without much benefit for themselves other than the gratification
of giving and seeing somebody else's passion project come to fruition. Anything
over $100 will be difficult to field without a benefit for
the donor. What is the best perk you can give somebody who wants to offer a substantial gift? A tax deduction.
How does a lone individual like me offer tax-deductible donations when I am my one single entity. I'm not prepared to start a non-profit organization or field a board for my
very first try at self-producing my art. In all of my
research over the past few months, I have found that there is a way that I
can offer such benefits to anybody that is inspired enough by my work to
help commission my process. I can do this through fiscal sponsorship.
Fiscal sponsorship is when a not-for-profit organization (often 501(c)3) offers a pathway for funds an individual raises to be filtered through their company back to the creator in order
to help them offer tax-deductible benefits to donors, often for a fee of 5-10% of
the donation amount. Essentially, donations are legally funneled through the
organization to appear as if the company is receiving the gift.
Beyond
the benefit of receiving tax credits on donations, fiscal sponsorship
also allows an individual to apply for grants in a way that they
couldn't have before. Again, using the umbrella of the sponsoring
non-profit, one can reach out beyond seeking offerings for individuals and apply for grants that are only available to not-for-profit companies. Using fiscal
sponsorship, you can open many more pathways to receive larger amounts
of funding to make your project a reality.
How
do you find an organization to fiscally sponsor you? I did a great deal
of research on my path to funding my work. After checking out a handful
of potential sponsors, I settled on New York Live Arts (often referred to as
NYLA). In order to apply for sponsorship, I had to sign up as an
Associate Artist ($100 fee). From there, I had to write a proposal. This
included information about my project, its mission, a loose timeline, a
budget, and how I planned on raising funds. Once I submitted all of this
information, I had to travel to New York City for an in-person meeting to discuss specific
details of my project. I was lucky enough that NYLA was happy to
fiscally sponsor me with no further questions beyond my proposal.
While
I set my sights on NYLA for sponsorship, there are many other organizations
that help artists gain a non-profit-like status. Among those I researched were
Fractured Atlas and The Field. These organizations regularly offer fiscal
sponsorship to artists. Along my path, I also found that you can reach out
to any non-profit organization and request that they allow funds to be
allocated through their organization. If you have a relationship that could open up this door, be sure to have clear terms on how this set up will work in writing. Every organization will be different in the percentage of funds they keep for helping you out, how long it takes for that money to be released, how you
apply for grants, what type of grants you can apply for, and much more.
Be sure that all of this is clear before you sign any contract. Also be aware that you will be responsible to pay taxes on the money that you raise. Keep tabs on your expenses to make sure that you deduct the expenses to minimize how much you have to pay back at the end of the year.
Fiscal
sponsorship is a god-send to many self-creating artists like myself. It is
very unlikely for most individuals to receive larger donations without
offering something to funders beyond your final product. With
fiscal sponsorship, you not only open up the possibilities of greater funding,
you vastly expand your pool of grant applications. If you ever consider creating your own work; whether for one show, a tour, an
installation series, or anything else that inspires you, definitely look into connecting with a
respectable non-profit organization that will allow your funds to be
stream-lined through their system.
