From July 21st to August 24th, 2025, LAKE Studios Berlin will host the seventh volume of the SUBMERGE Festival — celebrating choreography and artistic solidarity. The festival consists of workshops taught as precursors to performances. The workshops function as “re-creative” labs where artists guide participants through the process and methods used in the crafting of their work. Each workshop includes a formal performance of the piece investigated in the lab.
For the 2025 SUBMERGE program, we are seeking seven finished performance works from diverse dance backgrounds. At least one of the works chosen will be for younger audiences. We will also be compensating 20 Berlin based artists 100€ for the work it takes to submit an application with an “Aufwandsentschädigung Lottery”*. Please see below for more details.
OUR CALL: We are looking for finished pieces to be presented in an evening or afternoon double-bill with another artist’s work. We will also give consideration to durational pieces or installations designed for public spaces. Artists must be willing to offer a two-day workshop, the Choreographer’s Labs, to introduce their work processes to other professional performance artists. Workshops will take place from 10:30 – 16:00 on two consecutive days. Chosen pieces will be presented the weeks of July 21, July 28, August 4, August 11, or August 18th. Seven projects will be chosen, of which one can be international, and the other six projects must have at least one main collaborator who is based in Berlin. Please read about our festival before applying and download the application form and info sheet : https://lakestudiosberlin.com/submerge-festival/
SUBMERGE Festival will take place in wheelchair accessible and barrier free studios.
Artist selection process: The selection will be made by a 3 person Jury which will be announced on our website shortly.
What we can offer
- Two-day Workshop: 500€ for one facilitator, or 800€ for two facilitators. – Performance: 360€ per artist
- Professional Light and Tech support for the performance
- Professional video and photos of the performance
- Child-care support during workshops and performance – Accessibility support
- 8 hours of studio time in July or August
- Travel costs for international artists
- Accommodation on site in case the artist does not have a place to live in Berlin
To apply, please use the application form available for download on our website. Applications can be submitted in German or English, however the workshops must be taught in English. Please email completed form with all required material to submergenoSpam@lakestudiosberlin.com
Application Deadline: March 21st at 18:00. Results by second week of April.
Aufwandsentschädigung Lottery
With our SUBMERGE open call, LAKE is experimenting with ways institutions can better recognize the *work* it takes to self-produce. We understand that applying for opportunities takes time, and only a small number of selected artists benefit from the effort. In an attempt to compensate Berlin based artists who submit thoughtful applications to SUBMERGE, but are not chosen, we will hold a lottery for compensation. The Aufwandsentschädigung Lottery will randomly choose 20 artists from the pool of unaccepted applications to receive a 100€ compensation for their time in applying. It is not a perfect system, but rather a symbolic attempt to recognize the unpaid labor that surrounds artistic work. Only complete applications that were not selected for the festival will be entered in the lottery.
To be eligible, you must:
– be registered in Berlin and be able to write us an invoice
– submit a complete application that demonstrates a genuine response to the SUBMERGE call
– be willing to have your name published as a recipient of the “Aufwandsentschädigung Lottery”