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Creative Vic Sustaining Creative Workers grants announced

17 June 2020   Books+Publishing
@booksandpublishing

Creative Victoria has announced the first recipients of its Sustaining Creative Workers initiative, created as part of the Victorian Government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Initially announced in April as a $2.2 million fund, the quick-response program has since been topped up with a further $2 million of sustainability funding for the creative sector. The total funding pool for the program is now $4.2 million, with the first batch of grants announced this week totalling $2.4 million. Further applications are still being assessed and the recipients will be announced in the coming weeks.

Announcing the first round of recipients, Creative Victoria said the creative industries ‘ordinarily employ 280,000 people in Victoria’ and have been ‘among the hardest hit sectors … leaving thousands of creative practitioners and associated trades out of work and leading to millions in lost revenue’. It said ‘more than $2.4 million in grants will support almost 400 Victorian creative industries workers, organisations and micro-businesses to undertake activities that will help protect creative careers, explore new business opportunities and enable the sector to rebuild and bounce back’.

Creative Victoria said the fund received more than 2500 applications over four weeks and that in partnership with Regional Arts Victoria and Arts Access Victoria, ‘rolling assessment continues on the program’.

The successful recipients announced in the Literature category were:

  • Alicia Sometimes ($5000): ‘To research and develop a poetry collection to be released online in multimedia format and in a completed poetry collection.’
  • Amanda Ord ($5000): ‘To undertake skills development and reach new audiences.’
  • Caroline Stills ($4000): ‘To research and develop the first book in a junior fiction series encouraging an interest in STEM for young children.’
  • C B Mako ($2500): ‘To research, develop and write new work.’
  • Donna Elizabeth Wheeler ($5000): ‘To upskill and research a memoir that responds to the restrictions on travel during the COVID-19 pandemic.’
  • Elizaveta Maltseva ($4500): ‘To undertake research and development for “The Russian Cookbook” project.’
  • Fatima Measham ($5000): ‘To research and develop a series of four-essays.’
  • Grace Yee ($5000): ‘To research and develop a collection of poems.’
  • James Phelan ($4600): ‘To develop a crime novel.’
  • Jane Thompson ($5000): ‘To adapt her play “Love Monster” into a publication.’
  • Julie Murphy ($2700): ‘To research and draft a children’s book.’
  • Kill Your Darlings ($6588): ‘To expand the magazine’s suite of online writers workshops.’
  • Koraly Dimitriadis ($5000): For ‘creative development and publication of poetic short films exploring isolation, relationships, family and feminism.’
  • Lucy Trelor ($5000): ‘To research and develop a new novel.’
  • Maggie Jankuloska ($5000): ‘To complete a middle-grade novel ‘Once Upon a Blood Moon’, a modern re-imagining of four classic fairy tales.’
  • Mandy Beaumont ($5000): ‘To complete a new novel “My Heart is an Ocean”.’
  • Mark Brandi ($4313): ‘To complete the final draft and editing of a new novel.’
  • Michelle Wright ($5000): ‘To complete her first novel, and undertake research and development for a collection of short stories.’
  • Nam Le ($5000): ‘To write a series of long poems inspired by meaningful places in Melbourne.’
  • Nova Jane Weetman ($5000): ‘To write six short stories to be published online focusing on characters from her 2019 novel Sick Bay.’
  • Raspberry Ripple ($12,500): ‘To develop an online presentation of a play-reading initiative by Disabled playwrights.’
  • Rosalind Bellamy ($5000): ‘To research and write a memoir.’
  • Santilla Chingaipe ($5000): ‘To complete a book detailing the untold stories of African convicts transported to the Australian penal colonies.’
  • Shareena Clanton ($5000): ‘To develop, research and write a new literary work.’
  • Stephanie Van Schilt ($5000): ‘To support research and development for a true crime podcast and accompanying essay series and for a podcast focusing on women and non-binary creatives impacted by the current widespread cancellations.’
  • Toby Fehily ($5000): ‘To produce a 12-part nonfiction podcast.’

Regional recipients

  • Blarney Books & Art, Port Fairy ($10,000): ‘To equip the business to reach a wider audience and build up their community through online and digital activity.’
  • Christine Michaels ($5000): ‘To support the author to develop an up-to-date digital presence to promote her work.’
  • Christopher Flynn ($5000): ‘To promote and tour his new novel online via digital platforms.’
  • Jock Serong ($5000): ‘To support the release of the author’s new novel, The Burning Island, with an online marketing and distribution strategy.’
  • Mark Penzak ($5000): ‘To enable the playwright to expand his practice to writing children’s books, including adapting one of his plays into a novel. He will also research the children’s book market, publishing and merchandising.’

For the full list of recipients in all categories, see the Creative Victoria website.

 

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Category: Local news