PR BRIEF
UNLIMITED ROUND 3 COMMISSION ANNOUNCEMENT
About the programme
Unlimited seeks to make the world a more vibrant, equal and accessible place for all.
We are doing this by embedding work extraordinary art by disabled artists within the
UK cultural sector, reaching new audiences and shifting perceptions of disabled
people.
Unlimited offers talented disabled artists funds and mentoring support to develop,
produce and show ambitious work. Unlimited is delivered in partnership by Shape
Arts and Artsadmin, with funding from Arts Council England, Arts Council Wales,
British Council and Spirit of 2012. http://weareunlimited.org.uk/about-unlimited/
Unlimited’s key messages
1. Embedding disabled artists throughout the cultural sector
2. Ambitious art by ambitious artists
3. Highly artistic and creative work celebrating diversity - “must see” not “should
see”
4. Disabled people as achievers (a shift in self and social perception)
Context for the brief
Shape and Artsadmin have been delivering the Unlimited programme since 2013.
To date Unlimited has provided £932,000 in funds for commissions and R&D awards.
Previous artists commissioned include Birds of Paradise and Random Accomplice’s
sex comedy Wendy Hoose (2014), Noemi Lakmaier’s balloon filled Cherophobia
(2015) and Liz Carr’s TED talk with songs’ Assisted Suicide: The Musical (2015).
And what next!?
In December we announced the shortlist for the next round of commissions,
revealing new ideas by artists from across the UK and beyond. With over £1.3million
to invest in new art over the next four years we'll continue to commission
provocative, high quality work across all art forms and genres, all led by disabled
artists.
PR Aim
By 2020, Unlimited wants to see a monumental (and global) shift change in the
cultural sector’s attitudes to work by disabled artists and access for disabled
audiences. To do that, we need to reach sector professionals nationally and
internationally with our key messages and information about the commissioned
works.
We want to maximise the moment when the commissions are announced to extend
Unlimited’s current media reach through exposure in more (relevant) mainstream
channels. This has been a challenge in the past but with so much brilliant work
behind us and yet more to come, can you help to change this?
THE BRIEF
AIM
On 28th March 2017, the third round of Unlimited’s commissioned artists will be
announced at No Boundaries, an annual symposium on the role of arts and culture
(by Jo Verrent in Hull and Tony Heaton in Manchester). We are looking for widespread coverage reaching arts professionals, focusing on the programme’s key
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messages and building excitement around the new commissions, which for the first
time feature international collaborations and emerging artists.
WHO WE’RE TRYING TO REACH
Key target audiences:
People that love us, love us - Unlimited has a fantastic reputation with its allies and
supporters but our reach needs to be wider, so…
● Primary: Cultural Professional Sector (UK and international arts councils, arts
funders, arts organisations, arts festivals, arts venues, local authorities)
● Secondary: wider cultural audiences (UK and international)
Stakeholders (managed by Unlimited team for coverage):
● Shape
● Artsadmin
● ACE
● Spirit of 2012
● ACW
● British Council
● DAO
● Creative Scotland
● ACNI
Key spokespeople:
● Jo Verrent, Senior Producer,
● Tony Heaton, CEO, Shape Arts
● Manick Govinda, Head of Artists’ Advisory Services, Artsadmin
● Commissioned artists (TBC once decided)
CONTENT
● Images of previous commissions (available now)
● Images of the next round of commissions (from 21 March)
● Facts and stats (impact/reach) from 2013-16
WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE
● An interview/feature in at least one national weekend broadsheet supplement
● An interview/feature in at least one specialist arts trade publication
● A feature in at least one national lifestyle channel
● Features/interviews with artists in their local newspapers/zines
● Coverage with relevant other arts/NGO groups/collectives
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Coverage on TV/ Radio if the story fits
● Media leads for future campaigns/stories
●
OUTPUTS
● Campaign plan (including timeline and central story idea)
● Press release (content collation, writing, distribution)
● Media liaison (journalists, press offices, bloggers, etc.)
● Artist and staff liaison (for interviews)
BUDGET
£2,500 (inc VAT)
HOW TO APPLY
We would like to hear from experienced and enthusiastic PR professionals who are
keen to spread the word about Unlimited and are passionate about creating lasting
change. This is the first of several PR briefs that we’ll be issuing over the next few
years, so if you’re keen to work with us longer term, this could be the start of a
journey.
Please send an initial response describing how you would approach this brief (no
more than 500 words), along with your CV and any relevant portfolio
materials/reports to Jennifer Tomkins, Head of Marketing & Development, Artsadmin
by Thursday 2nd February 2017: [email protected]
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