Pokémon GO studio Niantic will donate $10,000 (roughly £8,000) to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the company revealed today.
The donation will go towards supporting the artists, producers and venues behind the festival’s digital channels to help the organisation in wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Back in April, it was announced that there would be no physical Edinburgh Fringe Festival this August. It’s the first time in 70 years there hasn’t been an event.
However, the festival organisers have recently unveiled a variety of digital plans for this summer. They range from live-streamed performances to community-focused events and support sessions.
In the same post, Edinburgh Fringe’s organisers also launched the FringeMakers Crowdfunder campaign. It’s a fund designed to support the artists, venues, workers and small businesses affected by the pandemic; a loss estimated to be around £21 million for the Fringe community alone.
Artists can register with the FringeMakers platform in order to fundraise as part of a central Fringe campaign. All registrants will get to keep 100% of their donations, with no fees for using the platform. And artists will be able to reciprocate people’s kindness with access to live stream shows, exclusive content and custom merchandise.
“Niantic’s support will have a material impact on our ability to deliver key digital projects that benefit the thousands of artists and community members that the Fringe Society exists to serve,” commented Shona McCarthy, Chief Executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society.
“From a digital programme of artists events to a dedicated video showcase platform for Fringe shows, Niantic is helping keep the spirit of the Fringe alive in a year where a physical festival has proved impossible.”
Find out more about FringeMakers, and the reimagined 2020 Edinburgh Fringe Festival on the official website.
