Public voting has now begun for the European Festival Awards.
Over 300 European festivals representing 32 countries have applied to take part in the 2014 edition of the European Festival Awards. The award ceremony will return to De Oosterpoort in Groningen with a gala award show, opening the Eurosonic Noorderslag conference and festival in style on Wednesday 15 January 2014.
Presented in association with Yourope and Eurosonic Noorderslag, the European Festival Awards (EFA) are the only pan-European body solely dedicated to recognising the contributions and achievements of the event organisers and performing artists that generate billions of Euros for local economies and brighten up the summer for tens of millions of festival-goers each year.
This year the winners will be decided by a combination of public votes and votes from the EFA jury made up of journalists, booking agents and festival organisers, whose vote will count for 25 per cent in the final outcome of the public voted categories. Public voting commenced on 1 October and will close on 1 November. You can submit your vote at: eu.festivalawards.com/vote
Last year’s European Festival Awards featured over 250 festivals from 32 different countries, with over 500,000 votes. Festival Awards MD, James Drury, said: “It’s been a really exciting year for festivals across Europe and I’m expecting further growth in the number of festivals participating, on the back of last year’s fantastic growth. European promoters have a great healthy sense of competition and it’s going to be exciting to find out which events the fans loved the most.”
This year, a new award has been added to the event; the Health & Safety Innovation Award. Many festivals have, or are developing, innovative ways to maintain and improve health and safety standards within their crowds, aiming to keep the audience safe and reduce risks within the event environment. This category will be judged on the extent to which the innovation – be it product or service, has made us safer, greener, and has had the most educational and economic benefit. To apply for nomination of this award, go to eu.festivalawards.com/apply and fill out the Health & Safety Innovation Award application form.
Tickets are now available for purchase at: eu.festivalawards.com/tickets/. The last two years have seen tickets sell out before the event so book early to avoid disappointment. Tickets include a three course gourmet meal before the show, a seat at a table, complimentary beer, wine and soft drinks and access to the after show party. To book a whole table, you must purchase 10 Platinum tickets.
Image: European Festival Awards
