ZAO Festivals presents

ZAOstock2026

A one-day, artist-built music festival in downtown Ellsworth, Maine. Run by The ZAO — a global, independent music community. Year 1: relationship over scale.

Oct 3

2026

Noon - late

Ellsworth

Maine

Franklin St Parklet

days to go

as of today

team members

8 circles

Order of priorities

Music first. Community second. Technology third.

That order matters. We are digital creators focused on helping musicians and other artists with distribution and support.

Music first

Independent artists at the center. The lineup is open-call, peer-curated, and built around what serves the room — not what serves a sponsor brief.

Community second

The ZAO is 100+ members. ZAOstock is the global community showing up for one local town: Ellsworth, Maine. Year 1 is about relationship.

Technology third

We use Farcaster, distribution platforms, and decentralized tools because they make the work easier for musicians and artists — not because they ARE the work. Tools serve the music. Always that order.

What it is

The festival

One-day outdoor festival at the Franklin Street Parklet in downtown Ellsworth. Independent + ZAO-vetted artists, multiple acts, day-into-evening. Programmed end-to-end by The ZAO community.

The umbrella

ZAO Festivals is our event arm. ZAOstock is the flagship. Future events inherit the equity, mailing list, and trust we build this year.

The brand

The ZAO (ZTalent Artist Organization) is an independent music community: 100+ members, organized around fractals (weekly peer-ranked contribution rounds) and a shared treasury.

The lineup

Open-call. Submission-based. Cutoff roughly one month before the event. Curated by the Music circle (DCoop + Shawn) with peer input.

Where we are

Sponsorship

Commercial sponsorship. Direct-deal with The ZAO.

Presenting

Name on the banner, the poster, the stage and the stream. Named in every announcement. Two on-stage mentions. First refusal on 2027.

Sponsor an artist

Covers one artist's travel. They make content carrying your name. The artist opts in.

Community

Logo on the site, named in the recap, thanked from stage.

How to be involved

Artists

Submit through the open call. Cutoff is roughly one month before the event. Independent + ZAO-vetted.

Suggest an artist →

Year 1 commitments

1Show up locally. Meet the city, the venue, the music scene. Roddy at City Hall, Steve Peer in the basement.
2Take care of the artists. Fair pay, real promo, real community. Open-call lineup, peer curation.
3Document everything. Public log. Build in public.
4Don't overscale. Capacity the venue + city are happy with. Year 2 earns the right to grow.

Contact

For everything

info@thezao.com

Zaal — ZAOstock organizer, The ZAO founder

Online

Site: zaostock.com
Farcaster: /thezao
X: @thezao_

+ Long-form briefing (last edited via dashboard)

# ZAOstock 2026

> **Saturday, October 3, 2026 - Franklin Street Parklet, downtown Ellsworth, Maine**
> One-day outdoor music festival - free, all-ages, family-friendly.
> Part of the Art of Ellsworth program for Maine Craft Weekend.
> Run by The ZAO. After-party at Black Moon Public House.

## What it is

ZAOstock is a one-day music festival celebrating local + regional independent artists. 4-6 acts on one stage, 12pm-6pm, free admission, optional donations + sponsor support. Followed by a Black Moon Public House after-party 30 seconds from the parklet.

We are also doing a **August 15 dry run** at the same venue - 50 invited guests, 2-4pm, full operational rehearsal so Oct 3 lands clean.

Format is simple by design: one stage, walkable downtown, low-impact, integrated with the existing weekend foot traffic from Maine Craft Weekend.

## Who runs it

The ZAO (ZTalent Artist Organization) - a music + community organization based in Maine, four years building, 188 members, Farcaster-native, with a year-round event series, daily newsletter, and on-chain governance. ZAOstock is our first public Maine event.

**Anchor partners:**
- Heart of Ellsworth (programming + community)
- Wallace Events (staging + tents)
- Art of Ellsworth (umbrella series)
- City of Ellsworth Parks/Rec (venue + permits)
- Black Moon Public House (after-party)

## Who is on the team

19 people across 8 working circles - music, ops, partners, finance, merch, marketing, media, host. Anyone can join any circle. Not traditional roles, just self-organizing groups doing the work. Zaal Panthaki is the convener for year 1.

## What success looks like

A small festival that proves the model. Local + regional artists want to play, locals + day-trippers want to come, sponsors see real value, the city is glad it happens here. Year 2 grows. Year 3+ evolves into a multi-day culture + art + music event that anchors a fuller Ellsworth weekend.

## What we are asking for

| | Need |
|---|---|
| **Sponsors** | Cash or in-kind for production / artist fees / merch. Local + regional + web3 brands welcome. Tiered exposure on stage signage, livestream, and digital channels. |
| **Artists** | If you are local or regional and want to play, send us your music + a short pitch. We pay performance fees within budget. |
| **Partners** | Food + beverage vendors, lodging discounts, transportation help, photo / video crew. |
| **Press / media** | Coverage of a build-in-public Maine festival run by an artist-owned org. Open to interviews, behind-the-scenes, day-of access. |
| **Volunteers** | Day-of crew - gates, runners, parking, hospitality. Sign up at zaoos.com/stock/apply |
| **Audience** | Show up Oct 3, bring friends, RSVP at zaoos.com/stock |

## How we operate (short version)

- All artist payments and contracts handled by ZAO
- Insurance: full event policy, certificate naming City of Ellsworth as additional insured
- Build-in-public: livestream + photo / video documentation, published process and content for community + sponsors
- Cleanup commitment: site returned same-or-better than found
- Lean budget: $5K floor, $25K stretch goal - we do more with less and document it

## Get in touch

Zaal Panthaki - zaalp99@gmail.com
ZAO: thezao.com - daily newsletter at paragraph.com/@thezao
ZAOstock RSVP / apply / sponsor: **zaoos.com/stock**

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**One ask above all:** if any of this resonates, reach out. We would rather build the right team than pad the wrong one.