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International Festival for Emerging Performing Artists

AC/E PICE Programme

In this 23rd edition, the mobility grants from the AC/E Programme for the Internationalisation of Spanish Culture (PICE) will help to further the internationalisation efforts of local emerging artists abroad.

ACTFESTIVAL is strongly committed to reaching as many programmers as possible. This is key to enabling emerging companies to access a more established circuit, with our festival serving as a springboard for this. Each year, we select a group of agents who fit with the proposals we programme, aiming to ensure that the companies gain the maximum learning and benefit from the experience.

The festival does not merely facilitate the viewing of works by programmers, but also promotes and organises meetings where companies can understand the key aspects of distributing their work abroad.

The guests invited this year, thanks to the support of PICE, are:

  • Cristina Catalina, Dash Arts (London)
  • Chris McCreery (Belfast International Arts Festival  (BIAF)
  • Majid Seddati, Casablanca International D’Art Vidéo Festival (Morocco)
  • Michele Mele, Operaestate Festival Veneto (Italia)
  • Marie Proffit, STHLM DANS (Sweden)
  • Miléna Chiron,Théâtre des 2 Rives (France)

Miléna Chiron

Head of Communications, Audience Development and Arts and Culture Outreach at the Théâtre des 2 Rives in Charenton-le-Pont (Paris). She holds a Master’s degree in Theatre Production from Sorbonne-Nouvelle University and is an actress.

The Théâtre des 2 Rives in Charenton-le-Pont (Paris) is a venue that, year after year, reaffirms its role as a place of creation, encounter and local cultural service.

Under the banner of eclecticism and openness, its programme establishes a dialogue between theatre, dance, music, circus and multidisciplinary formats to offer everyone moments of emotion, reflection and togetherness. It remains committed to its resident and associate artists, whose work permeates the city throughout the year through artistic and participatory projects in schools, neighbourhoods and local organisations. Through them, the Théâtre des 2 Rives reaffirms the role of theatre as an agent of social cohesion and local roots.

Michele Mele

Michele Mele is the artistic director of the dance section of the Operaestate Festival Veneto (Italy). The festival has just celebrated its 44th edition, with a programme of over 100 performances ranging from dance and theatre to music and circus, showcasing emerging artists from the Italian and international scenes. Michele has extensive experience as a curator and programmer, as well as a lecturer on the Master in Performing Arts Management at the University of Bologna.

 

Marie Proffit

I am a cultural manager, a dance curator and a producer based in Stockholm, Sweden.

I am the Artistic Director and Co-Founder of STHLM DANS, an international dance festival taking place each year in May in Stockholm since 2022. I curate the festival with a focus on audience engagement, placing dance in new contexts such as museums, public spaces, libraries end more, promoting access and diversity without compromising on artistic quality. The human body, the collective experience and the need to co-create with audiences have always been at the centre of my work.

I have long experience of cultural management and programming at European level: I previously was the Cultural Attachée at the Institut Français in Sweden, international consultant at Nordberg Movement and the Executive Secretary of EUNIC London.

I was for many years the Communication Officer for the European dance platform Aerowaves and its festival Spring Forward, and has collaborated with European Dancehouse Network on communication strategy and conference curation (with Sadlers Wells and The Place in London).

Majid Seddati

FIAV is an annual event that, for the past thirty years, has brought together professional artists and young creators presenting multimedia installations, videos, performances and more. In 2024, FIAV turned its spotlight on Spanish creativity with the aim of forging links with the Moroccan art scene.

Furthermore, Majid is the artistic director of two other emerging events dedicated to bringing art to the periphery: the digital art festivals in Benguerir and Khouribga, also in Morocco. Majid Seddati’s participation is an opportunity to promote the work of emerging artists in North Africa.

 

Cristina Catalina

Associate,then Producer and currently Senior Producer, Dash Arts

Cristina’s visit on behalf of Dash Arts (London) may help to boost the international profile of emerging artists, given her experience and the fascinating work she has been carrying out for over 15 years as a producer at Dash Arts, both locally and internationally, giving a voice to artistic works that address the pressing issues of our time: migration, memory, identity and resistance.

 

Chris McCreery 

He is the Artistic Director and Chief Executive of the Belfast International Arts Festival (BIAF).

As an independent professional, he has over a decade of experience in developing and implementing transformative cultural strategies, programmes and events across Northern Ireland.

Before leading BIAF, he led the implementation of Belfast City Council’s Cultural Strategy, overseeing a £4.5 million investment portfolio supporting over 100 cultural organisations, and played a central role in the council’s programmes celebrating Belfast’s designation as a UNESCO City of Music.

In 2014, he founded and directed the Northern Ireland Science Festival, which has become one of Europe’s largest and most vibrant celebrations of science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics.

other guests 

As well as being a competition and a showcase festival, ACT also functions as a trade fair. Every year, we invite performing arts professionals, producers and programmers from both Spain and abroad to join us for the four days of the festival, and this aspect of the festival is a key priority.

This year’s edition will feature:

  • Royal Docks Originals (London) , Gaillard Center (South Carolina) & World Cities Culture Forum. 

  • ESADCYL Valladolid

  • MASDANZA  Canariy Islands

  • Duri Dance Theater (Korea)

  • Festival de Olite 

  • BAD Festival (Bilbao)

The aim of these invitations is to establish ACT as a meeting place where participants can share experiences and build international networks and collaborative strategies amongst professionals from the sector who come from diverse backgrounds.

Furthermore, it offers an opportunity for artists and companies taking part in ACT, who often discover new professional opportunities through meetings with programmers or professionals from festivals and venues.

The ACT organisers encourage these meetings to take place both organically and in a relaxed atmosphere over lunches and dinners, as well as in specific spaces such as ACTmosfera.