In the past (particularly in the days before Marcato) we used to get all artist applicants to fill in all the details we needed to put on the show. This worked pretty well, but we also found that some of the info became out of date, or was simply incorrect. Understandably, artists were reluctant to spend too much time making sure their info was perfect when they weren't sure they were even getting a gig.

So, we changed our processes. As it stands, when we get artists to apply¹⁾ we ask them a bare minimum of information that programmers require to make decisions about whether or not they want the act. When we know which artists are going to be programmed²⁾ we need to gather a lot of additional information in order to successfully present them.

For this we have a Public Form in Marcato that artists fill out. Any information that the artist themselves filled out in the initial EOI, or in fact any information a programmer has added in Marcato, will be pre-filled on the form. This is mostly just to save the artist any double-handling.

Yes. But also no.

Technically, all the information required can be entered into the back-end of Marcato by programmers. If for some reason you would like to communicate directly with the artist and manually fill in all the info, you certainly can. Circumventing the forms is possible, but it's annoying. It disrupts some invisible processes we have set up. Just keep admin staff in the loop if you're doing things this way so they can check that everything is running smoothly.

Short answer - just get your artists to fill in their forms. We understand it's a small annoyance, but much nicer to withstand than showing up to the festival site and not having tickets, accommodation, backline, or getting paid. Ya feel?

We have found it works really well to separate artists into different “streams”. These relate to the different program areas (so for example, a dance act will receive a special dance accept email with a link to a special dance info sheet), but also helps to separate the different types of artists within programs. One of the most obvious ones is separate international acts from local acts. From the internationals, we need to gather info on their airport transfers, their cottage accom, and more. For locals, we just give them some info on camping. Keeping these streams separate is the best way to keep the forms as short as possible.

Artist Info Sheets are automatically sent once an artist is approved. Maisie usually sends these by setting the approval status, which starts the automated process of notifying the artist and asking them to fill in the linked form.

That's the 'standard' process, but of course many artists won't go through the normal steps. Also, we end up needing to hassle lots of the acts to fill in their forms. Here's how to send (or re-send) out the forms to artists:

Navigate to the artist's profile. On the right-hand side (you might need to scroll down a little) there are the available forms listed. You can click the green 'View Form' button which will open the link in your browser. You can then copy the link (from your browser navigation bar) and into an email to the artist.

This method can be great if you aren't sure the artist is receiving the automated Marcato emails³⁾. Please leave notes in the “Comments” section on the artist profile so we know that the artist has been hassled.

All of the forms have a special email set-up that requests the artist to fill in more info. If you would like to know what your form says you can get Maisie to show you. To use this method you select the red 'Email form' button. This will bring up a pop-up where you can add a personal message to the top of the email. Either write a message or leave blank.

The standard email text looks like this:

Hi {recipient_name},

Welcome to Fairbridge Festival 2020! We're so excited to have you along this year.

If you could take some time to fill in the info we need, we can make sure you have a fun time and together we deliver a great show.

Please head to {form_link} and make sure existing info is correct, and add any missing info.

Thanks,
Fairbridge Festival team

Ellie has provided the below so there is different text for the Youth Arts Space form. If you would like to customize your hassle email just let me know!

{form_object.primary_contact_first_name},

This is a reminder to please fill in the form so we can send your contract out.
{form_link}

So excited to have you along this year in the Youth Arts Space!

Thanks,
Ellie Glen

Teen Arts Space Coordinator
Fairbridge Festival

Either is good! Any doubts, just give Maisie a yell.