So, you are well on the way to breaking in the UK. You’ve had some success with your releases, toured the country OR have been involved in successful and meaningful writing and studio sessions in your home country and are now eyeing territories beyond our shores to develop your career. In short, you are ready to export your music and explore international opportunities to learn, network and collaborate.

The UK is one of the biggest exporters of new music in the world. Every year our finest emerging talent is invited to key music industry-focused festivals and showcasing events to perform to interested international labels, promoters, agents and publishers or to attend conferences.

Although it is crucial for an act to attract and secure deals in territories outside of the UK, these first steps into international territories can be expensive. The International Showcase Fund exists to help cover the costs of these trips, enabling artists to connect with and to showcase to their potential next label, promoter, music supervisor, sync agents or potential future collaborators overseas.

In order to be eligible for support through the International Showcase Fund you will need to be able to demonstrate the following:

• Be based in the UK
• Write and/or perform your own original music
• Have been formally invited to perform or participate in real life or virtually at the following:
  • At an international event, with a conference element, that is geared towards music industry professionals, rather than the general public
  • in an international songwriting camp which is geared towards international collaboration and creative and career progression. Please note we prioritise supporting songwriters at camps associated with international showcasing and conference events but welcome applications for one-off writing camps. For longer-term songwriting career development, including international activity, please see the Hitmaker Fund
  • at one of the named international events as part of our partnership with British Council (please see British Council Partnership FAQ on this page for further details)
  • At a virtual showcase geared towards international export opportunities
  • at a UK based event that has a clear international export focus and is geared towards non-UK international music industry professionals, rather than the general public. Please note for UK based events you will need to demonstrate a clear need for travel and accommodation support as UK based activity is not a priority of the fund. Support for UK-based showcase activity is considered on case-by case basis, where partners deem them to be strategically important with priority always going towards showcases in international markets. Please email applications@prsfoundation.com for clarity ahead of an application.
• Have a strong profile in the UK or the territory you’re looking to export to (i.e. been featured in the national press/had airplay on national radio/toured nationally/had previous successful releases)
• Have a list of meetings with music industry executives (e.g. publishers, labels, agents, etc.) confirmed for when you are at your chosen showcase
• Have a strong business case for attending this specific event (e.g. are you building upon prior success there, or following up on opportunities to grow your business in that particular country)
• Are in need of funding support and not in a situation where other companies can and should cover the relevant costs of your in real life or virtual participation

If you can demonstrate all of the above in your application then you may be eligible to apply, however an invitation to an international showcase and meeting the criteria of the fund does not guarantee a successful application and new applicants and non-funded artists will be prioritised. This is a very competitive scheme, and on average only 45-55% of applicants are awarded funding. For highly competitive events such as SXSW the percentage of successful applicants may be lower. You will therefore need to make the strongest possible case as to why you are “export ready” and should be supported at this time. In order to show this you will need to explain your career successes to date, and why this showcase is important to expand your export potential, you should have concrete plans of what outcomes you expect from the showcase/export event and how you will achieve these. If you are participating in an event as part of our partnership with British Council you will need to show that there is a strong cultural benefit to the host country and the promoters inviting you.

Examples of demonstrating export readiness include:

• Stipulating any pre-existing relationships you have in the country of the event (i.e. music industry executives that specifically want to see you at the event)
• Knowing who you intend to meet with regarding any new business opportunities (specific names of people are better than just the companies they represent).
• You should have concrete plans of what cultural, creative and business outcomes you expect from the showcase/export event
• Showing how you are going to promote yourself before and during the event

If you are applying to one of the named events as part of our partnership with British Council you will also need to demonstrate:

• The potential cultural impact of your attendance at the event (testimonies, collaborations)
• How diasporic ties can be strengthened through your attendance

The International Showcase Fund can and often supports music creators who are signed to record labels, publishing companies and those working with existing team members. However, you will be asked when applying which companies you are working with and why ISF support is still needed and advisors and partners may feel based on your application that support is not required. We encourage applications from DIY/self-releasing artists and from those signed to independent labels when still in need of support.

We expect to see financial contributions from medium-large companies who will benefit financially from the applicant being supported with public and private funding via the International Showcase Fund. If you are signed to a major label, major label subsidiary, or a major affiliated label or publisher in the territory you are travelling to, you are ineligible for ISF support and should not apply. If you are signed to a major label deal which does not cover the territory you are travelling to, please contact applications@prsfoundation.com before applying.

Applications can be made by music creators directly or on behalf of the music creator by their representatives. Those who can apply on behalf of a music creator include;

• Managers
• Labels
• Publishers
• Booking agents
• PR/Pluggers
• Lawyers

Trusted advisors/personal assistants to the music creator

Please note: Any resulting grant offer is made to the music creator. Authorised representatives can in effect project manage funded activity. However, should there be a change in team around the music creator or should the funding support not reach the music creator, the PRS Foundation would reclaim monies paid/owed in order to ensure that the funds are used solely for the purposes outlined in the application directly for the benefit of the music creator.

The table below outlines maximum grant amounts based on the size of your performance party (i.e. no. of band members), alongside any potential contribution to your Management.

The International Showcase Fund can contribute a maximum of 90% of your trip’s overall costs and we expect at least 10% of costs to be covered by the music creator’s manager, label, publisher, etc.

Because we recognise the importance of management support at the event, you also can apply for costs related to your management’s attendance at the event, please see table above for maximum amounts allowed. Applicants will be asked to detail their manager’s track record, plans, and likely export outcomes as part of the application form.

We also advise that artists, managers and music creators make use of the contingency proportion of their budget to work through any risks posed such as Covid-19, visa delays and flight cancellations.

The fund cannot be used to support general international touring or public facing international festivals. We also cannot support people to attend events as delegates only, there must be a performance and/or writing opportunity involved in the showcase or writing camp.

The tables below outline the main costs which can be covered under each strand. Please note, this list is not exhaustive – please contact the team at applications@prsfoundation.com if you are unsure of any unlisted costs.

ISF runs on a rolling deadline due to the high number of eligible showcases being run all around the world. Specific deadline dates for key events can be found here but please note this list is not exhaustive.

We recommend you apply for funding as soon as possible after receiving an official invite to your chosen showcase in order to give our panel of industry experts and partners enough time to consider your application and turnaround a decision as quickly as possible.

As a rough guide, our experts consider applications 2-3 months before showcase events take place. While the processing of visas is entirely your responsibility, it can take 3 months for some territories. For this reason, we prefer to receive applications 10-12 weeks prior to the event taking place and must receive applications at least 8 weeks prior to the event taking place. For further information on Visas please see the ISF specific FAQs section.

Under certain circumstances (e.g. change of management, a late invite from the event, the artist’s ability to fulfil funding partners’ diversity goals) applicants can submit an Exceptional Circumstances Form for partners to consider time sensitive applications within 8 weeks of an event taking place. To do so, please download and complete this form before emailing applications@prsfoundation.com

Can I apply for funding for my manager or crew?

You can also apply for up to £1,000 towards the cost of a manager to accompany you/support you – please see the table in the main guidance for strand specific maximum grant limits. Applicants will be asked to detail their manager’s plans, roles and likely export outcomes.

As showcases generally have short stage turnaround times, and generally just involve linechecks our advice is that it’s better to rely on the in-house crew. If in certain circumstances you are travelling with a tour manager rather than your manager, or other crew please explain in the application why they are required for the specific showcase you are applying for, please do note that partners will prioritise the costs associated with getting the music creator/band to the showcase i.e. travel/accommodation/visas.

If an artist’s disability or accessibility requirements warrant additional support – please see additional access needs section for more information.

Applicants with access requirements

We recognise that for music creators who identify as having a disability and access requirements, some proposed activity incurs additional costs, meaning that applicants may require additional grant support.

Music creators with access requirements are advised that:

• When submitting an ISF application, applicants should submit Expenditure and Income breakdowns which do not consider additional access costs.
• At the end of the budget section, you will have the opportunity to detail additional access requirements needs which will be considered by PRS Foundation’s management team.
• Assessors will not see the additional access costs section and funding decisions will not be affected by additional accessibility support. If selected, an appropriate offer amount will be pledged separately.

What will I need to demonstrate in my application?

This is a very competitive scheme, and currently only 45-55% of applicants are awarded funding. For highly competitive events such as SXSW the percentage of successful applicants may be lower. You will therefore need to make the strongest possible case as to why you should be supported. Applicants need to be export ready so you will need to have concrete plans of what outcomes you expect from the showcase/export event and how you will achieve these, such as:

A clear case that you are export ready including your career successes to date, and why this showcase is important to expand your export potential.

Knowing who you intend to meet with (specific names of people are better than just the companies they represent).

How you are going to promote yourself before and whilst there.

Stipulating any pre-existing relationships you might have in the country of the event (i.e. music industry executives that specifically want to see your band at the event)

If you are participating at a virtual event, how you are going to ensure your attendance is of a high quality and how you are going to deliver your video/live-stream in an impactful way

If you are requesting digital contingency support (In real life events only) how you will use this to further your career internationally if it is not used for virtual performance

Budget

You will be expected to finance at least 10% of costs of the trip yourself or from other sources. Please be aware that we are not always able to fund you to the full amount that you have requested. Therefore, when budgeting for your trip, please take into account that you might not receive the full amount that you have applied for.

When allocating funding we seek out the cost of the cheapest possible flights, transfers and accommodation options at the time of decision and use these as benchmarks when assessing budgets laid out in applications.

We recommended you use websites such as Skyscanner, Opodo and Travelsupermarket to find the cheapest tickets and work your budgets out using these prices.

We encourage applicants to make use of the contingency allocation in the budget to cover any increased costs.

Visas

Applicants are required to research, understand and organise their own visa to perform internationally and generally showcase opportunities do not cover the cost of visa applications.

For attendance at any song-writing camp or showcase in the US – such as SXSW – all UK acts must get an appropriate visa. It is your responsibility to process visas and to fully research options as there have been occurrences of musicians being turned away with devastating consequences.

Following discussions between the Musicians’ Union, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, British Underground, SXSW and others, the received information is that provided you are performing for no fee at official showcases and for purely promotional purposes only, you should be able to enter the U.S. under an ESTA. Under normal circumstances we would advise people to apply for a B1/B2 visa or, if performing outside the permitted showcase exception, a P or O visa. The B Visa is less costly and time consuming than the O or the P visa.

However, if you are only doing the official SXSW showcase, whilst the B1 visa is ideal, given the current backlogs as a result of the pandemic at US consulates, it may not be possible to get a B1 visa, in which case we would recommend ESTA.

For information on the ESTA Visa Waiver Programme and / or the B1/B2 visa, please see the latest guidance from the Musicians’ Union.

There are advantages to entering the US with on a work visa (e.g. you can play paid shows and unofficial showcases and can take advantage of more opportunities). We therefore recommend researching this process. For information on obtaining work visas for US showcase events, please go to the Tamizdat or Traffic Control Group websites.

Gathering all the required paperwork for a visa can be time consuming and can take 2-3 weeks to gather and we advise applying for work visas as soon as possible, and at least three months ahead of a US showcase event in order to save money with a view to try and avoid the likely processing delays. It is possible to apply closer to the event but costs increase significantly.

If you are still unsure, we advise for further info to get in touch with Tamizdat or Traffic Control Group websites directly.

Following the UK’s departure from the European Union, we also recommend applicants are confident and familiar with the travel documentation required for EU performances.

We recommend given the changing and evolving nature of the visa situation reviewing the Musicians’ Union Guidance and interactive flowchart for musicians visiting the EU. We also recommend reviewing the Incorporated Society of Musician’s Guidance regarding country specific travel for musicians.

What is the British Council Partnership with International Showcase Fund?

This partnership is specifically designed to enable UK artists to perform and collaborate at festivals and showcase opportunities across sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, South East Asia and Latin
America, to support new ways of showcasing (including writing camps) which are appropriate and relevant to the territories they are held in.

The aim is to foster connections with festivals, aid internationalisation, and provide opportunities for artists to expand links with the global south, especially those with diaspora ties. We recognise that the traditional Anglo-American showcase model is not the only model of showcasing used across the globe and that there are alternative types of support to enable connections at events alongside performance opportunities or writing camps.

All funding decisions are made by International Showcase Fund partners PRS Foundation, Department for Business and Trade, British Underground, Arts Council England, the Musicians’ Union, PPL, Creative Scotland, Wales Arts International, Arts Council Wales, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and British Council. For high-demand showcase events such as SXSW, a panel of independent music industry experts meets to select artists. Decisions are made based on the criteria stated in our Guidance Pages.

If as an unsuccessful applicant you are unhappy with the funding decision and believe correct procedure has not been adhered to, please see our Grievance Procedure document. Funding partner decisions are final.

The International Showcase Fund is designed to support an applicant’s first or crucial steps into international territories. As such, we recommend applying for support for the most suitable events and territories for your career level. Because music creators must be invited officially before applying for ISF support, there is no limit on the number of ISF applications you can make per calendar year.

We also accept applications from previous ISF grantees. However, please note that ISF partners may prioritise those not funded previously, and it is less likely that you will be supported for two events in the same territory*. If you have been previously funded to virtually attend an international showcase event, you are able to apply for further in real life activity at the same event in the future. Additionally in light of Covid-19 if you have been awarded an ISF grant to attend an event which was cancelled due to the pandemic you may also reapply to the International Showcase Fund for the same event in future years.

* In exceptional circumstances (i.e. for specialist genre-based events such as Folk Alliance, JazzAhead of Americana Fest), artists may be able to make a strong business case for a second year of ISF support. If you have been invited to return to such an event for a second year in a row, please contact info@prsfoundation.com before a second application can be made.

Please apply when:

• You are confident that you are export ready
• You have been invited to showcase at an international showcasing event
• Music industry figures are hungry to see you play
• If all of the above points apply to you, then apply now.

If you have read all the guidance and checked the deadlines page

Apply Here

Please note, new applicants and non-funded artists will be prioritised.