Durchstarten – Questions and Answers

On this page you can find answers to the following questions:

Who and what can be funded by Durchstarten and why?

Who and what can be funded by Durchstarten and why?

  • What is the purpose of Durchstarten and who is it for?
  • What is Arts Education (“Kulturelle Bildung“)?
  • What do you mean by “barriers”?
  • What kind of projects do you fund?
  • Can people over the age of 27 participate in my project?
  • What do you mean by “expert“ (project leader)?
  • Can I get funding if I don’t want to work with young people?
  • Do I need previous project experience in order to apply for funding?
  • Can I get funding if I’m under the age of 18?
Cooperation partners

Cooperation partners

  • What is a cooperation partner (“Kooperationspartner“)?
  • Can I cooperate with an institution or association I already working for?
  • How can I find cooperation partners?
  • My cooperation partner won’t be doing the project with me anymore. What can I do?
Deadlines, project duration & money

Deadlines, project duration & money

  • For how long and how often can I get funding?
  • How often can I apply for funding?
  • When can I start with my project?
  • How much money can I get per project?
  • A friend of mine and I want to carry out the project together. Can both of us get money?
  • What is a beneficiary (“Zuwendungsempfänger*in“)?
  • What can I use the money for?
  • How much money can I earn as an expert?
  • Do I need to tell you what I’ve spent the money on?
  • I get social benefits such as “Hartz IV“ or BAföG. Can I still get money for my project?
  • All this sounds complicated. Can you help me?
  • Where does the money for Durchstarten come from?
Application

Application

  • How can I apply for funding?
  • Can you help me write the application?
  • In what language can I write the application?
  • My German is not so good. Can you help me translate the application?
  • You ask about my special experiences as an expert. What do you mean by that?
  • I have already handed in my application but I would like to make some changes. Is that possible?
  • Why can’t I fill in the application form?
  • My cooperation partner might not be able to sign the application in time. Can we hand in the signature later?
  • I will work together with several project partners. Do all of them have to sign the application form?
  • What will happen to my data?
Other

Other

  • Where can I find participants for my project?
  • What residence status and work permit do I need in order to be allowed to receive your funding?
  • Where can I find examples of projects funded by Durchstarten? On our Facebook page we show pictures and videos of projects and inform about dates for project presentations
  • How can I contact you?

Who and what can be funded by Durchstarten and why?

What is the purpose of Durchstarten and who is it for?

Public funding should be accessible to everybody. However, some people are faced with so many barriers that they can’t apply for public funding for their own projects. This applies to young people, people with disabilities, people with migration background and refugees, people without formal training, among others.

Through a simplified application process, we want to lower the barriers within the funding system, so you can be more active in the field of Arts Education.

What is Arts Education (“Kulturelle Bildung“)?

For us, Arts Education means the engagement of children, teenagers, and young adults in the wide field of arts and culture. They use arts and culture as a means to deal with topics they find interesting and relevant. Furthermore, the young people have a say in how projects are designed.

What do you mean by “barriers”?

For us, barriers in the application process mean that people can’t apply for public funding in other funding programmes, because they are faced with a variety of obstacles within the system of the application process. For example, such obstacles can be:

  • Language:
    “I’ve been learning the German language for only a year now. How can I manage to fill in an application form of 10 pages?“
  • No accessiblity:
    “I’m blind. This is why I’m using a screen reader that reads the the contents shown on the computer screen out loud. The current online application can’t be read properly by the screen reader.”
  • Bureaucracy:
    “I’ve been having good project ideas for some time and I’ve already tried to apply for funding but without success – so many steps and technical terms that I’m not familiar with.”

Applications are submitted on the basis of self-assessment. Ask yourself: “Am I one of the persons Durchstarten was designed for? Or do I actually have the possibility to hand in anapplication for funding programmes such as funding stream 1 or 3  (‘Fördersäule 1’ and ‘Fördersäule 3’)?”

What kind of projects do you fund?

Your project has to meet the following conditions:

  • Tandem principle: You are an expert working together with at least one cooperation partner. You and your partner have to cover the two following fields of work/expertise:
    1) Arts/Culture (you are an expert in an art form or another artistic partner is taking part in the project, for example a theatre, dance group or musical institution)
    2) Youth or Education (a school, youth club, association, etc.)
  • Young people up to the age of 27 living in Berlin are participating in the project. They are actively involved in the course and the content of the project and are given space to influence the process. However, the person(s) carrying out the project can be older!
  • You are doing something artistic in the project. For example: music, dance, rap, graffiti, theatre or performance. In so doing, you are dealing with topics the participants find interesting.

Can people over the age of 27 participate in my project?

Yes. However, the majority of the participants mustn’t be older than 27 years.

What do you mean by “expert“ (project leader)?

A person carrying out the project. Projects can be carried out by a single expert or a team of experts. However, only one expert submits the application together with the cooperation partner. The expert submitting the application is the beneficiary (“Zuwendungsempfänger*in”), that is the person receiving the money each month, managing it, and submitting a report when the project is finished.

Experts are people from the fields of arts and culture, social affairs/education, and youth. Experts can also be people with some experience working in projects or with young people. You don’t necessarily need a professional degree in the respective field. In your application, you should point out what makes you an expert.

Can I get funding if I don’t want to work with young people?

No. But there are funding programmes that might apply to you, such as the Berlin Senate’s programme „Weltoffenes Berlin“. You can also consult Kreativ Kultur Berlin.

Do I need previous project experience in order to apply for funding?

No.

Can I get funding if I’m under the age of 18?

No.

Cooperation partners

What is a cooperation partner (“Kooperationspartner“)?

A partner you are doing the project with. You need at least one partner connected to the young people you want to work with as participants in your project. Usually, this partner is a group or institution. If you are carrying out the project with more than one partner, it is enough to have one partner ensuring that there will be participants in your project.

There are different types of possible cooperation partners:

  • From the field of arts and culture (“Kulturpartner“): for example individual artists (dancers, rappers, singers, actors, performers, painters, etc.). Or a person who has artistic skills but is not necessarily working in this field as a professional. The cultural partner can also be an institution or organisation such as a theatre, a cultural association or an artistic initiative or group.
  • From the field of education (“Bildungspartner“): a partner from the areas of formal education, apprenticeship/schooling, or counselling. For example, a school, child care centre, education association (“Bildungsverein“) or an educational initiative.
  • From the field of youth (“Jugendpartner“): a partner from the areas of youth leisure facilities, upbringing, places where young people are spending time. For example, a youth centre or youth club, a self-organisation, etc.

In each project, there must be at least one partner or expert from the field of culture & arts and one partner/expert from the field of education or youth. For example, if you are an artist, you could work together with a school. Or you are a teacher who wants to work with a music group.

Can I cooperate with an institution or association I already working for?

You cannot be a member of this association or institution, neither in its board nor for other administrative tasks. Moreover, you cannot be employed there. However, cooperation is possible in case you’ve only occasionally taken on tasks for this institution or association.

How can I find cooperation partners?

For example, you could look for partners using Kubinaut. Or you could personally ask schools, youth clubs, or other institutions in your neighbourhood.

My cooperation partner won’t be doing the project with me anymore. What can I do?

Please inform us immediately and search for a substitute partner as soon as possible.

Deadlines, project duration & money

For how long and how often can I get funding?

Only one time for a duration of up to 12 months. Durchstarten is meant to help you get started, so that later on you can apply in our other funding programmes. There you have the possibility to get funding more than once. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions regarding the application procedures!

How often can I apply for funding?

Once a year. You can find the deadlines on Instagram,Facebook or www.durchstarten.berlin.

When can I start with my project?

Usually, in spring.

How much money can I get per project?

12,000 EUR maximum.

A friend of mine and I want to carry out the project together. Can both of us get money?

Yes. Depending on your involvement in the project, each person can get up to 1.000 EUR per month. The project’s maximum total costs can’t exceed 12.000 EUR. The expert submitting the application will receive the money for both of you and will then use that money to pay the second person.

Here is an example: You are two experts who carry out a project over a period of 4 months. Expert A (applicant) is responsible for project management and coordination. Expert B is responsible for conducting artistic workshops for 3 months. Person A receives 1,000 EUR per month for the entire project period. Person B also receives 1,000 EUR for 3 months. In addition, 1,500 EUR are needed for workshop material. In total, the project costs 8,500 EUR.

What is a beneficiary (“Zuwendungsempfänger*in“)?

The person receiving funding from us. S/he carries out the project, manages the money, pays other people working in the project and attends our exchange meetings to report on the project. Also, s/he will submit a written final report once the project is finished. There can only be one beneficiary in each project.

What can I use the money for?

Only for things needed for the project, such as fees (e.g. for artists), materials or rental costs for technical equipment.
You can find a detailed list on what you can and can’t spend the money on here.

How much money can I earn as an expert?

There is no prescribed rule for this. However, we recommend you to calculate 30 EUR per hour as a rough guideline for artistic and pedagogical work. When estimating your working hours, please take into account the time you will need for preparation and follow-up work.

Do I need to tell you what I’ve spent the money on?

Yes. You will have to hand in a report of about 2 pages, in which you are also listing all your expenses („Verwendungsnachweis“ or “Abrechnung“). You don’t have to submit all your fee contracts, bills and receipts. However, please keep them in case we have an inquiry and need to see them.

I get social benefits such as “Hartz IV“ or BAföG. Can I still get money for my project?

Yes. But you need to inform the office (“Amt”) responsible for your social benefits about the fee you will receive in the project. They might consider your fee when calculating your social benefits.

All this sounds complicated. Can you help me?

In case you get funding from us, you will take part in altogether 4 coachings in which we will explain how everything works.

Where does the money for Durchstarten come from?

Durchstarten is a project of the Berliner Projektfonds Kulturelle Bildung. This fund is a funding programme of the Berlin government organised by Stiftung für Kulturelle Weiterbildung und Kulturberatung. The project fund receives about 3 million EUR per year in order to support artistic projects with young people.

Application

How can I apply for funding?

  1. Download the application here: application (in German)
  2. Fill in the application form digitally (in German). Save the form. If you have any problems filling in the form, please open the document with the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.
  3. Send one copy (no scanned copy) along with the applicant expert’s resume and, if applicable, further experts’ resumes at info@remove-this.durchstarten.berlin
  4. Send one copy of the application form with both yours and your partner’s original signature AND one black-and-white copy, as well as a signed Letter of Intent (“Absichtserklärung”) of each additional project partner (in case you work with more than one partner) by post to:
    Berliner Projektfonds Kulturelle Bildung
    – Geschäftsstelle –
    Stiftung für Kulturelle Weiterbildung und Kulturberatung
    Spandauer Damm 19
    14059 Berlin

Please note: You have to send your application by the application deadline. The date of the postmark applies here.

Can you help me write the application?

No. If you have general questions regarding the application don’t hesitate to ask us. However, we can’t fill in the form with you. If you need advice for the concept of your project, we invite you to make a personal appointment with us.

In what language can I write the application?

German. But don’t be afraid of making mistakes! What is most important is that you describe what you want to do.

My German is not so good. Can you help me translate the application?

No. But maybe you could ask your cooperation partner for help.

You ask about my special experiences as an expert. What do you mean by that?

Please describe here what distinguishes you as the creator of the project. For example, you can describe what experiences you’ve already gained in Arts Education, arts or culture. Maybe you’ve already participated in some projects yourself? Maybe you’ve already dealt with the participants of your project in the past or you have a lot in common, and that’s why you know what topics they're enthusiastic about? What experiences have you already gained in the artistic field or in working with young people?

I have already handed in my application but I would like to make some changes. Is that possible?

No. But of course you can inform us about additional information regarding your project per e-mail or telephone.

Why can’t I fill in the application form?

There are some pdf readers that can’t read the form properly. Please download Adobe Acrobat Reader (freeware) to fill in the form.

My cooperation partner might not be able to sign the application in time. Can we hand in the signature later?

No.

I will work together with several project partners. Do all of them have to sign the application form?

Only one cooperation partner can sign the form, along with the expert. For each additional project partner, a signed Letter of Intent (“Absichtserklärung”) has to be submitted along with the application. This applies to individuals (e.g. further experts you are carrying out the project with as a team) as well as institutions, associations etc. In this letter, the partner declares their interest in participating in the project.

What will happen to my data?

Please see our privacy statement here: Datenschutz Antrag (in German).

Other

Where can I find participants for my project?

The main part of your participants should learn about and participate in the project through your cooperation partner. One possible way to search for a cooperation partner is Kubinaut. If you are looking for additional participants for your project, you can make an event entry (“Termin”, max. event duration 2 weeks) or a project entry (“Projekt”, over 2 weeks) on Kubinaut.

What residence status and work permit do I need in order to be allowed to receive your funding?

We can’t answer this question given that the answer depends on your specific personal situation. Please ask the responsible office (“Amt”) if you can get funding. Here you can find an initial overview and possible contacts (pages 27/28).

Where can I find examples of projects funded by Durchstarten?

OnInstagram andFacebook we show pictures and videos of projects and inform about dates for project presentations.

How can I contact you?

E-mail: info@remove-this.durchstarten.berlin
Telephone: 030 3030444-49

Instagram
Facebook

By mail:
Berliner Projektfonds Kulturelle Bildung
– Geschäftsstelle –
Stiftung für Kulturelle Weiterbildung und Kulturberatung
Spandauer Damm 19
14059 Berlin