British Council celebrates 30 years of internet with call for artistic ideas

Expanding upon the vision with which the World Wide Web was created 30 years ago, British Council, in its latest initiative, has invited ideas that will address creativity, connection, culture and collaboration through digital media.

In the 3rd edition of British Council's Digital Open Call, a platform that seeks creative ideas and concepts that show art of tomorrow, the winners will get funding of up to GBP 40,000 (Rs 37 lakh approx) to launch their projects in 2019, Tom Birtwistle, Director North India, British Council, told PTI.

"The theme of this year is to celebrate 30 years of the World Wide Web and how it has silently changed the world. The project should broadly connect to the theme of celebrating the creation of the world wide web and address creativity, connection, culture and collaboration.

"It could be intended for an audience primarily in India but with the potential to reach beyond and explore how we can make the web more inclusive through artistic platforms," he said.

The theme for the open call also focuses on "equal economic access and access to digital connectivity for women and girls".

The initiative in previous years created "Saptan Stories" -- a crowdsourced storytelling project involving 2 million people, Mix the Body, Mix The Play, and Mix the City projects.

While the contest is a way to connect people through the arts and facilitate cultural exchange between the UK and India, it also encompasses the celebration of "diversity, inclusion, equal opportunity and freedom of expression.

"As the UK's cultural arm, we aim to increase the appreciation of contemporary UK culture in India and vice versa, in order to give greater focus, depth and relevance to the long-standing relationship between the UK and other countries.

"The Digital Open Call offers a blank canvas for anyone with brilliant creative, digital ideas to match our ambitions to excite and inspire young people with digital and mobile content and collaborations between the UK and India, Birtwistle said.

The project ideas that must be submitted by January 31, can involve digital platforms, mobile applications, movies, and websites, he added.

Talking about the Council's ongoing and future plans in the country, Birtwistle said that after being inspired by the creativity and talent of young people, they have signed MoUs with various state governments.

"We are inspired by the creativity and talent of young people, artists, musicians, teachers and have signed MoUs with various state governments (West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh) to promote cultural collaboration.

We have been working together with world-class cultural organisations to create new works and share new stories around the UK, India and online," he said.