Volunteer
FOR THE FESTIVAL TO WORK WE NEED VOLUNTEERS!
Volunteering for the festival givs you free admission on Friday and Saturday and tickets entitling you to eat from the sandwich smorgasbord once a day. Coffee and tea are complementary. Alla volunteers work 8 hours total during the festival, or 10 hours before or after the actual festival.
The application is now closed. Welcome back Umefolk 2021!
There will be an obligatory general information meeting for ALL volunteers and volunteer-group leaders on Thursday, 20 February 2020 at 6 pm at Umeå Folkets Hus (where the festival is).
Directly after the general meeting volunteers get together with their respective group leaders for more information and preparation for the festival!
VOLUNTEER GROUPS
There are a lot of volunteers at the festival, about 100 people help out every year making Umefolk a success. To organise it all efficiently we divide up the tasks inte smaller volunteer groups, each with it's own group leader responsible and in charge of scheduling you and the different tasks.
Below you see the different groups. The volunteer coordinator or your group leader will contact you around the end of January after we've divided up the volunteers. We can't guarantee you your first choice, but we'll try our best.
For information send a mail to volontar@umefolk.com.
The Volunteer Groups:
Posters
During the weeks before the festival you'll help put up our wonderful festival poster!
Artist Transportation
You will help drive the artist to and from the airport, bus station and train station, and to/from where they're staying. Other volunteer groups can need help as well. The festival rents a couple of cars but it can be good if you can help out with your own car. Drivers license is required for this group.
Backline
The Backline group helps carry and transport equipment to the venue Folkets Hus, and makes sure all backline is at the right stage at the right time. The group works both before, during and after the festival. Some heavy lifting is involved, so you need to be healthy and over 18. Drivers license not required.
Decoration and signs
You help to decorate the venue and the various stages, to make the festival area nicer and more inspiring than ever! At least some volunteers are needed for preparation and planning before the festival.
After Festival Party
This group organises the wind upp party on Saturday night. The group usually is organised so that some of you shop and prepare the (separate) party venue on Saturday, the rest clean up on Sunday morning. All the artists and volunteers are invited to this party so it's usually a bash!
Main Entrance
This group checks for tickets, puts on festival armbands and generally ensures smooth passage into the festival. You also keeps an eye on the nearby Tonsalen emergency exit to make sure it's not used. You will be the first people the public meets at the festival!
You need to know Swedish to be in this group.
Spotlights
This group mans the spotlights, making sure they're following the right person. Mainly during the Allspelet on Friday but also during other concerts on both Friday and Saturday. You're also available for general help during the concerts. You get trained by our lighting technicians, and it's important be at the Allspel daytime rehearsals on Friday and ideally even previous days.
Boutique
One flight up, at the heart of the festival. Lots of public contact selling artists music, festival shirts and a bunch of other cool stuff.
Office
This year we've combined to just one office, the brains of the festival with a bunch of different tasks. You'll be helping our wonderful artist with the help they need, putting armbands on volunteers and answering visitor questions. A couple of doors need to be monitored so people don't go where they're not allowed. This is also where the check in is for the mass lodgings, where workshop and course information is, etc.
Workshops and Courses
You will be helping out preparing the rooms, and welcoming the participants.
Mass lodgings
This group prepares the school where the mass lodgings will be. About 8 classrooms and the small gymnastics hall on Friday afternoon need to be inspected and somewhat prepared. On Sunday between 11/12-15 the rooms need to be cleaned and returned original condition so the pupils can't tell we've been there. We need one volunteer (not planning to party late) to sleep over at the school on Friday and Saturday night.
Stage Hosts
This group makes sure the concert halls are looking good and stay alert during the acts. You make sure the artists have water and other things they need, and on the smaller venues you welcome the artists on stage and present them to the audience (which can involve some preparation). The sound technician for Idun (the largest stage) needs help with tasks such as rolling up microphone cables during some concerts, and in the second largest venue Studion we need help clearing of the stage and setting tables.
Please note that all artist presentations are in Swedish, so you basically need to know Swedish to be in this group.
The application is closed. Welcome back Umefolk 2021!