Open Call | NEMO – Northern European Mobility Opportunity from Nordic Culture Fund
NEMO is a pilot programme for mobility and artistic exchange, supported by the Nordic Culture Fund and the arts funding agencies of Ireland, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The programme aims to foster international collaboration, strengthen artistic networks across the region and support more artists and arts professionals in engaging with international partners.
The call focuses on individual artists and arts practitioners in the early stages of their careers, reflecting a shared recognition among the partners that this group has a particular need for additional support and opportunities in the current climate.
Opens for applications
Aug 18 – Sep 15, 2025, 11:59 pm (CEST)
What is NEMO? – Aims of the Open Call
As near neighbours, the Nordic countries, the UK and Ireland constitute a shared international space with fertile ground for creative collaborations.
However, several developments in recent years, including the pandemic, growing economic uncertainty, and the UK’s exit from the European Union, have contributed to making international working across the region more difficult. The call therefore builds on a reciprocal wish to broaden the possibilities for practitioners across the Northern European cultural scene.
The shared aims of this programme are to:
Foster international collaboration.
Develop artistic networks across the region.
Encourage more artists and arts practitioners to work confidently with international partners.
Help to apply – Accessibility and Inclusion
Who is it for?
The focus of the call is on individual artists and arts practitioners who are in the early stages of their artistic careers, reflecting our shared experience that this group has a particular need for additional support and opportunity in the current climate.
Artists and arts practitioners based in the Nordic countries (Denmark, the Faroe Islands, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the Åland Islands), as well as those in the UK (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales) and Ireland, are eligible to apply.
Artists and arts practitioners in the Nordic countries can apply to develop a partnership or collaboration (e.g. with individuals, groups, or organisations) in one of the five nations comprising the UK and Ireland – and vice versa. All parties involved in the application must have clearly agreed on the scope of the partnership before the application is submitted.
We want to ensure that opportunities are open to all. We particularly welcome applications that reflect the full diversity of identities and communities across all partner countries.
Who can apply? – Eligibility criteria
These are the criteria for applicants to be eligible to apply:
You are an individual artist or arts practitioner resident in one of the Nordic countries, in one of the four nations of the UK, or in Ireland.
You want to work with one or more artist(s), arts practitioner(s), or an organisation that is based outside your country of residence and in one of the other eligible partner countries outlined above (artists in Nordic countries can apply to work with a partner in the UK or Ireland and vice versa).
You can only be involved in one application to this fund.
You have a bank account in your country of residence.
You have a background and track record of working as an artist or arts practitioner and can provide a CV which shows this.
You have had limited opportunities to work internationally so far in your career – this could even be your first step towards working overseas.
You are applying for a new partnership or collaboration.
You have approached the person with whom you want to work and can provide a letter to prove this.
You can complete your collaboration within one year of receiving an award.
Who cannot apply?
Organisations cannot apply – Only individuals can apply; however, organisations may be included in granted initiatives.
Individuals with an established track record of working internationally – this fund is for artists and arts practitioners in the early years of their career.
Individuals not based in, or not intending to work with, the eligible partner countries.
Students in full-time education (undergraduate or postgraduate).
Individuals planning to attend residencies abroad.
Artists’ collectives involving multiple individual artists.
What you can spend your grant on
The call’s total budget would make possible up to 30 grants of up to DKK 75,000. As this is a limited sum, we expect applications to have a focus on the early stages of partnership and collaboration. For example:
Travel for partnership development and/or research and development rather than co-production costs.
Exchange of knowledge, know-how and experience.
Mentorships e.g. exchange of working methods, traditions, processes.
Capacity building e.g. strengthening of skills, resources, structures (in order to work internationally?)
Creation of / Design of a small-scale pilot for a future collaboration.
Applications can be for physical, digital or hybrid activity in response to the programme aims. Expenditure should be on travel, accommodation and allowances for time spent. We do not require any performative artistic output from your award but if you wish, you can spend some of your budget on research and development in preparation for such activity at a later stage.We welcome applications for partnership activities which take into consideration the environmental impact of their plans.
What you cannot spend your grant on
Capital expenditure – such as buying equipment.
Activity that starts before you receive a grant.
Costs that are already covered by other sources of funding.
Activities that generate a profit.
How much is available?
Application process and mandatory materials
Applications are managed through the Nordic Culture Fund’s application portal. Applications will only be accepted through the online portal (paper applications cannot be accepted).
Through the application portal, an online form will be available which must be submitted by the applicant before the deadline, together with a CV for the applicant and a letter of invitation from your chosen partner.
The application form will ask some short questions about:
Why you have chosen your partner and what they will bring to your collaboration.
What you hope to achieve if you are given an award.
What the impact would be on your ongoing practice.
Potential for future developments and broader regional benefits.
It will also ask you to submit a timeline for key activities and a basic budget breakdown. Here you should list the costs for travel, accommodation, expenses, fees for artists’ time, and so on. Grants will be paid in Danish Kroner, so we will ask you to submit your budget in DKK. An exchange rate will be fixed before the portal opens, and the application form will provide the information necessary for you to make any conversions from your own currency.
Personal access costs can be in addition to your activity budget and may exceed the upper application limit of DKK 75,000 (approx. EUR 10,000). Personal access costs are costs relating to your own access needs and/or any access needs of the artist you are directly working with to deliver the activity and/or to manage your grant. Additional access costs can be up to 10% of the applied amount. Please contact us if you need further help or guidance in applying for these.
What if I have a question?
You can contact the following programme leads in your country of residence:
Arts Council England
Nicola Smyth – Senior Manager International
Nicola.smyth@artscouncil.org.uk
Arts Council Ireland
Davide Terlingo – Head of International Arts
Arts Council Northern Ireland
Siobhan Molloy – Arts Development Officer (Venues, Festivals and International)
Arts Council Wales
Zélie Flach – Senior European Officer
Creative Scotland
Kate Deans – International Officer
kate.deans@creativescotland.com
Nordic Culture Fund
Henriette Sørensen – Administrative employee and NEMO-contact
Technical issues
If you experience any technical issues, please contact Henriette Sørensen at The Nordic Culture Fund.