Information about updated measures and recommendations
Easing the activities of cultural subjects and corresponding hygienic measures
Museums and galleries
Based on the Resolution of the Government of the Czech Republic as of 23 April 2020, it is possible to reopen museum and galleries from Monday 11 May. The Ministry of Culture has released the overview of hygienic measures in the document Ministry of Health’s recommendations for museums and galleries. The recommendations were written in cooperation with the methodical centers of the Ministry of Culture, Czech Committee of ICOM, Czech Associations of Museums and Galleries, Gallery Council of the Czech Republic, and Czech Association of Outdoor Museums. It is a set of recommendations, which only specifies general instructions from the Government of the Czech Republic and the Ministry of Health. The recommendations are valid as of 6 April 2020 and will be regularly updated based on the provisions of the government and the Ministry of Health. (Source: Website of the Ministry of Culture)
Libraries
The Ministry of Culture has also issued the Basic Recommendations for Libraries, which can be downloaded in the PDF format. They are linked to the Resolution of the Government on 23 April, which allows opening of libraries since Monday 27 April (the final decision is up to the specific authority provided there are specific hygienic conditions so that the library is ready to open). The detailed methodology regarding conditions of hygiene and organization in libraries will be issued by the National Library any time soon as the Central Library Board is finishing the paper. (Source: website of the Ministry of Culture)
Theatres
The following measures are still valid for opening theatres:
- 100 people max
- if actors want to play without face masks, they have to be tested for COVID-19 (the swab test not older than 4 days, then every two weeks)
- face masks are compulsory backstage
- viewers must wear face masks
- no seats outside the auditorium
- viewers must sit in every second row, it is necessary that one row is free; there should be maximum two people sitting together, they must be separated by a vacant seat from the others; if there is a homogeneous group, it is possible to buy three tickets next to each other
- it is necessary to have a bit-by-bit entry to the theatre spaces and the auditorium, and to provide disinfection
- no refreshment whatsoever
- The updated schedule of easing business and other activities
- The Ministry of Health, Ministry of Industry and Trade, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, and the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs have prepared a plan how to gradually return to the pre-COVID life. It will be adjusted according to the development of the epidemic. The plan provides information about when will the particular shops, services, and school activities be put back to normal if the situation is good. Information are on the website of the Government of the Czech Republic here.
The overview of the support for entrepreneurs and the self-employed
The Ministry of Industry and Trade keeps updating the means of support for entrepreneurs and the self-employed in their overview (here).
Instead of ticket refunds, the organizers will be able to give customers the vouchers for the upcoming cultural event
According to the information from the Ministry of Culture, the government approved the draft act from the Minister of Culture Lubomír Zaorálek at the government meeting on April 30. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the draft allows the organizers to offer vouchers for customers instead of refunding the ticket. The customers can use the voucher for a substitute event or the same event in a different time and date. People can contact the organizers regarding the vouchers for events that were supposed to take place until 31 October 2020. The act must now pass the Parliament and the President. Only then the act may be in force. (Source: website of the Ministry of Culture).
Information from the Department of Arts, Literature and Libraries at the Ministry of Culture about the set of measures for professional arts
As of the Resolution of the Government No. 408 issued on 9 April 2020, on some measures to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic of Covid-19 on culture, the Department of Arts is going to prepare specific grant tender in the course of May. Subjects without the founder, continually providing public cultural services, which have been granted the subsidy from the Ministry of Culture at least once in the past three years, will be able to apply for complementing the funding of operation costs (including salaries and overhead costs). The goal of the Ministry of Culture is to compensate the cut of income from their activities for independent non-profit organizations, not to saturate the drop in co-funding from local authorities. The planned deadline for applications is the end of June, or July 2020 (after easing the current limitations in arts).
Prague has prepared a benefit program for culture and local tourists
Prague will support affected culture and tourism with another 250 mil CZK. Theatres and other cultural institutions will be able to get the special-purpose subsidy. Contributory organizations which have been affected by the drop in fee revenues will get the help as well. Prague will also invest 100 mil CZK in the campaign to attract local tourists and the benefit program including entrance fee discounts. The measures have been already discussed by the economic board with representatives of all representative clubs and will be now approved by the municipal council (The source and more information on the website of the Prague City Authority here).
European Commission has amended Creative Europe as a reaction to the coronavirus crisis
European Union cannot decide about reliefs, such as postponing tax payments, yet it can amend the existing financial programs and provide money that had a different investment purpose. The subsidy program Creative Europe focuses on culture. It also includes the guarantee fund with loans for small and medium enterprises in culture and creative industry. According to Michaela Šojdrová, MEP, the funds of up to 600 mil EUR can be invested in the sector. Creative Europe is one of few centrally managed EU programs the Czech Republic is rather successful to draw from in a bigger extent. The Commission has amended Creative Europe as a reaction to the coronavirus crisis – it has extended the deadlines for submitting applications for some of the grant calls. As far as approved projects cancelled or postponed due to the pandemic are concerned, the organizers should be able to keep the funds for the already paid costs. The projects may be adjusted so that they can be implemented now, such as putting them online. More information on the Euractiv portal here.
Czech ITI Centre (International Theatre Institute) and Czech Music Community (CMC) have raised questions to specify details of easing extraordinary measures and changes in Pětadvacítka program
Czech ITI Centre and CMC, umbrella organizations for performing arts and music, have sent letters to ministries, in which they requested specification of details in the schedule of easing exceptional government measures related to SARS-CoV-2, as well as changes in limitations of the compensation bonus provided by the Pětadvacítka program. Details are here.
New projects to support art
New platform Czech Music Community has launched the project #zazivouhudbu (#insupportoflivemusic)
The emergency state has provided space for the new platform associating professionals in popular and classical music Česká obec hudební/Czech Music Community (CMC). The CMC has launched the project #zazivouhudbu, with the following proposals for measures: no VAT for music sale, lower VAT for tickets (10%), continuation for Pětadvacítka for the self-employed, the system of interest-free loans, or the foundation of the National Music Fund for dealing with damages.
The foundation of the Czech Music Community was initiated by the pro-export office SoundCzech under the Arts and Theatre Institute. The free association aims to enforce interests of 130,000 people in popular and classical music, as well as adjacent services, with artists, authors, programmers, promoters, festivals, clubs, music journalists, and professional technicians. The initiative includes Association of Audiovision Programmers (ADA), Independent Music Association (ANH), Association of Promoters and Producers in Culture (APPOK), Association of Musical Instrument Producers (AVHN), Brno Club Music Association (BACH), Czech Music Council (ČHR), DILIA, Festival Association (FESTAS), INTERGRAM (independent association of performing artists and producers of audio and audio-visual recordings), Music Managers Forum (MMF - CZ), Ochranný svaz autorský (OSA), Association of Classic Music Artists (SUK), Platform for Independent Czech Producers of Sound Recordings, Association of Authors and Performers (SAI).
Artist’s Life grant call
Artist’s Life foundation has announced the grant call COVID-19 regarding financial help for the self-employed performing artists based in the Czech Republic, with Czech citizenship and/or the permanent residency in the Czech Republic, or a residence permit in the Czech Republic. The call is valid as of 1 May 2020 with the deadline of drawing the funds. More information here.
Creative Europe presents the Creatives Unite project
The new Creative Europe project Creatives Unite aims to interconnect European culture professionals and allows them to discuss, share and come with joint solutions of the current crisis. Based on the virtual meeting of the EU Ministers of Culture, which took place on 8 April, the Commission proposed the launch of the online platform for the cultural sector, which should collect and share new information and good practice. This is how the Creatives Unite project was founded, with information about cultural and creative sectors, along with links to relevant networks, organizations, and initiatives. You can fill in this form. More information on the Creative Europe website.
Czech dance in quarantine
"And it is necessary to dance more!" The ATI prepared a video of Czech dancers’ quarantine practice for the International Dance Day. You can see the video here. You can support artists in independent dance, contemporary circus and motion theatre through the Dance Career Endowment Fund’s collection on the Donio platform.
Communication between artists and audiences
“The interruption or loss in communication between artists and audiences may lead to more negative results that the economic ones,” says the report called Performing Arts in Pandemic issued by the IETM association at the end of March 2020. This is a reminder for the autumn meeting – the call for deeper understanding of the complex and fascinating topic: audiences. The topic of who is and should be in the audiences has become rather topical and is analyzed in the paper on the ATI portal Creative Czechia here.
2nd round of the survey The Coronavirus and its Impacts on the Cultural Sector to include literature as well
The research team of the Coronavirus and its Impacts on the Cultural Sector include the Arts Management Department at the University of Economics, Department of Production DAMU and the ATI, represented by Jakub Grosman, Luboš Louženský, Pavla Petrová, Petr Prokop, Marek Prokůpek, Viktorie Schmoranzová and Daniel Šubrt. The team are now processing detailed results of the first round of the survey. After finishing and verification, the conclusion from anonymized data will be aggregated and provided to respondents and professional associations.
Respondents according to disciplines
|
Theatre and dance - individuals / employees, self-employed, including freelancers |
384 |
|
Theatre and dance - organizations |
151 |
|
Music - individuals / employees, self-employed, including freelancers |
415 |
|
Music – organizations, bands, institutions, concert halls |
108 |
|
Visual arts - individuals / employees, self-employed, including freelancers |
64 |
|
Visual arts – organizations including museums |
80 |
|
Overall number of respondents |
1202 |
The second round of data collection performed in the form of short and innovated questionnaire will start on Monday 11 May 2020 and will inquire about April data. It will also monitor literature. The team aims at collecting the data in monthly, later quarterly, intervals and map the longer period of time.
Final data will be provided to all respondents, made available on the ATI website, and provided to other participating institutions.
Komplex information about the survey: www.idu.cz/covid
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