The Australian Government’s Regional Arts Fund (RAF) will provide $379,719.00 to support 15 new projects in regional, rural and remote New South Wales in 2023.
The RANSW CEO, Dr Tracey Callinan, commented,
The projects selected for RAF funding in 2023 reflect the creativity and strength of the arts in NSW’s regional communities. Despite the challenges being experienced across our regional, rural and remote locations, our regional arts practitioners and organisations continue to find ways of responding, showing how the arts can tell our regional stories, explore the identity of our regional places and contribute to the recovery of our regional communities. The value of the arts outside NSW’s major metropolitan centres is clearly on display through the 15 projects funded from across the state.
Examples of projects funded include:
- Nahra – Something DeadlyNahra, is an autobiographical short film by Northern Rivers based filmmaker, Jahvis Loveday. Nahra follows the journey of a young Indigenous girl returning home after being taken away over nearly eight years ago after the passing of her mother. She is faced with the struggle of re-identifying who she is through visiting her lands, her waters, her skies and her people. Nahra must face her fears of disconnection by re-visiting her traumatic past and find her place in the community once again. The film will be shot and produced on Bundjalung country.
- Scene Shift Residency Exchange – The CAD Factory
A Regional/Metro residency exchange program between the Cad Factory and the newly built City of Sydney Creative Studios managed by Brand X. In this exchange, a regional NSW artist will undertake residencies in the Sydney CBD. Reciprocally, a metro based artist will undertake residencies in Sandigo. Each organisation will support the selected artists to engage in their respective communities to widen their networks, visibility and understanding of the breadth of arts practice taking place across NSW.
- Worimi Women – Cultural Camps – Forster Neighbourhood Centre Incorporated
The Worimi Women project will build the capacity of local Aboriginal women across generations to share and learn cultural skills and knowledge such as dreamtime and contemporary storytelling, weaving, art, dance and traditional cultural practices. Local artists and knowledge holders will facilitate workshops with groups of young women over a series of camps throughout 2023 & 2024 to develop the capacity of the Worimi community to preserve and grow a range of cultural art forms over time. - Riverina Touring Network – Eastern Riverina ArtsThe Riverina Touring Network is a capacity building and audience development program for venues across 8 local government areas. Through the employment of a Regional Producer, we will work with key staff to develop a sustainable model of touring and venue management, over a two-year period. The program reactivates vital community spaces after periods of dormancy due to Covid-19, upskills regional venue staff and provides performance opportunities for local artists, musicians & theatre companies, by coordinating multi-venue tours across the region. Venues include the Junee Athenium, West Wyalong Tivoli, The Art Centre Cootamundra, Tumut Montreal Theatre and the Ganmain Hall.
The Regional Arts Fund is an Australian Government program administered by Regional Arts Australia and Regional Arts NSW that supports sustainable, cultural development in regional and remote communities in Australia. The funding is targeted at activities that will have long term cultural, economic and social benefits for individuals and the community through the development of partnerships and cultural networks, by providing artists with professional development and employment opportunities, and by supporting arts and community development.
Find a full list of funded projects here.
Image: Kelly Leonard and Julie Briggs, Curation of Shadows (process), 2020. Photo by Vic McEwan