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Design

Game Design Emerging Talents: She Got Game

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Target group
Practitioner without connection to Switzerland
Submission deadline
1 December

What

She Got Game is a mentoring programme to promote equal opportunities in the Swiss and international game industry. It supports the representation of women in management positions through dialogue with experienced international experts from the game industry.

For Whom

  • The call for applications is aimed at anyone who identifies as a woman.
  • Game developers and game studios who have completed their field-specific training or who founded a company (as a legal entity) less than seven years ago are considered emerging talents.

Selection Criteria

  • Digital content for devices such as computers, game consoles, mobile devices or devices for mixed reality that require a high level of interaction and have a major impact on the content
  • Clearly defined objectives in terms of participation and career
  • Originality, feasibility, degree of innovation and marketability of the project
  • Copyright and rights of use are held by the project leaders

In addition to these specific criteria, the apply.

Financial Contribution

  • Individual coaching and input talks for project development, business strategy and finances, marketing, PR and pitch training
  • Involvement in a growing community of female game developers
  • Potential access to international trade fairs
  • CHF 3,000 towards the production of a prototype or demo version

Content Of Application

  • Short CV (incl. information on education/training, nationality and residency status in Switzerland)
  • Short description of the current project, including information on the type and genre, gameplay, platform, development status and target audience, including relevant visual material (max. 10 A4 pages)
  • Project portfolio
  • Expectations regarding the objectives of the programme
  • All documents must be submitted in English

Format-specific Exclusion Criteria

The following are excluded

  • Commissioned work and projects that are part of an advertising campaign or for promotional purposes
  • Purely technological projects without an obvious narrative and/or aesthetic content

Application Deadlines and Decision Timelines

Applications can be submitted from1 October
Submission deadline1 December
Notification of decision1 January
Earliest start date for the project1 February

Additional Information

  • All modules will be conducted in English.
  • The programme is a time-consuming commitment. Over the course of the six months, approximately 30 hours are expected to be spent on mentoring, lectures and presentations (plus potential additional time spent attending an event or festival).

Online Information Session

An online information session about the program will take place on October 22 at 2:00 PM CET.

Registration: https://forms.office.com/e/R2WbxWTTt9

Cultural practitioners with connection to Switzerland or who are resident in one of the following countries are eligible to apply:

Arab region

  • Algeria
  • Egypt
  • Jordan
  • Lebanon
  • Morocco
  • Palestine
  • Tunisia
  • United Arab Emirates

East Asia

  • Mainland China
  • Hong Kong
  • Macau
  • Taiwan

South America

  • Argentina
  • Bolivia
  • Brazil
  • Chile
  • Colombia
  • Ecuador
  • Paraguay
  • Peru
  • Uruguay
  • Venezuela

South Asia

  • Bangladesh
  • Bhutan
  • India
  • Nepal
  • Pakistan
  • Sri Lanka
  • Vietnam

West, Central, East and Southern Africa

  • Angola
  • Benin
  • Botswana
  • Burkina Faso
  • Burundi
  • Cabo Verde
  • Cameroon
  • Central African Republic
  • Chad
  • Comoros
  • Côte d’Ivoire
  • Djibouti
  • DR Congo
  • Equatorial Guinea
  • Eritrea
  • Eswatini
  • Ethiopia
  • Gabon
  • Gambia
  • Ghana
  • Guinea
  • Guinea-Bissau
  • Kenya
  • Lesotho
  • Liberia
  • Madagascar
  • Malawi
  • Mali
  • Mauritius
  • Mozambique
  • Namibia
  • Niger
  • Nigeria
  • Republic of the Congo
  • Rwanda
  • São Tomé and Príncipe
  • Senegal
  • Seychelles
  • Sierra Leone
  • Somalia
  • South Africa
  • South Sudan
  • Tanzania
  • Togo
  • Uganda
  • Zambia
  • Zimbabwe
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Graphic “Visibility” © Lydia Perrot

General Requirements

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Introduction

Pro Helvetia promotes the professional contemporary Swiss art and cultural production (without film) with a view to diversity as well as national and international reach. It supports the creation of new artistic works and productions, the exchange between Switzerland’s various linguistic regions, the dissemination of Swiss art and culture outside Switzerland and international cultural exchange. As a national foundation, Pro Helvetia supplements the promotional activities of Swiss cantons and municipalities and only supports projects that are cross-regionally or internationally recognised.

Pro Helvetia will only consider funding applications if they are complete and have been submitted on time.

To be eligible for support, projects must

  • have a clear connection to Switzerland
  • be of nationwide importance
  • be adequately co-funded by other public or private means
  • respects/guarantee fair working conditions

Connection to Switzerland

A connection to Switzerland is given, if one of the following conditions is met:

  • The production or project in question is developed or implemented by artists and cultural practitioners, who verifiably hold Swiss citizenship or are permanent residents of Switzerland and who are regularly artistically involved in relevant events in Switzerland.
  • The project is created, developed, or implemented by an independent group or cultural institution whose place of production is in Switzerland and who is regularly and publicly active in Switzerland.

Nationwide relevance

Nationwide relevance is given, if one of the following conditions is met:

  • The art and cultural practitioners participating in the project are regularly involved in programmes of nationally recognised art and cultural institutions in Swiss regions other than their own or abroad, and the project in question has a transregional appeal.
  • The artistic potential of an emerging art practitioner involved is exceptional in terms of a national or international career.
  • The project makes a significant contribution to the development of Swiss artistic and cultural production and its dissemination.
  • The project is of significant importance for the exchange between Switzerland’s various linguistic regions.

Assessment of content and quality

Within the framework of the available funds, Pro Helvetia prioritises projects that most comprehensively meet the funding criteria. The Foundation assesses whether

  • the project demonstrates high degree of independence and professional competence as well as social and thematic relevance
  • the project is implemented according to professional standards
  • the costs are commensurate with the expected impact
  • a lasting impact can be expected

Furthermore, the Foundation attaches great importance to the following aspects:

  • The project has an appropriate commitment to diversity.
  • Resources are used in an ecologically responsible manner and work and production are planned sustainably.

Restrictions

Pro Helvetia is unable to consider funding requests if

  • the same part of the submitted project is already received funding from other federal bodies (e.g. Federal Office of Culture, Presence Switzerland, Swiss National Science Foundation, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation)
  • the project is part of a school or university curriculum/basic training or continuing education programme (including dissertations, diploma projects, university scholarships, etc.)
  • funding is intended to cover infrastructure and equipment costs, as well as the costs of operating cultural facilities, archives and collections
  • the project does not depend on funding from Pro Helvetia

Status: January 2024