Our latest AICV Members’ Meeting took place on Monday 20 June 2016. The discussion included:

Creative Victoria – Organisations Investment Program (OIP) funding

• Outcomes of OIP funding could be announced within the next week.
• Additional OIP funding will be administered through separate agreements.

AICV update

• Submitted cross-departmental advocacy letters thanking Government Ministers for their role in Creative State and budget increases.
• CV encouraged sector to revisit advocacy around inflation prior to next year’s budget.
• AICV has begun the process of broadening its membership and remit beyond the arts, in line with the Creative Industries portfolio we’re now a part of. To look at formalising this new structure post election.

Member updates

Federal Election

• ArtsPeak hosted National Sector Meeting and National Arts Election Debate earlier this month.
• Sector Meeting was illumination about how the sector needs to develop relationships, and that what we lack is campaign infrastructure and collective relationships with advisors.
• The Liberal party is accustomed to being abused by the arts sector, not engaged or presented with an industry alternative.
• Debate can be viewed online at http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/booksandarts/national-arts-election-debate/7495524
• Still no Liberal arts policy.
• National Day of Action last Friday went well. ‘Collective impact’ starting to happen.
• Marginal seats work underway (including Regional Arts Victoria forums).
• Writers Victoria election campaign https://writersvictoria.org.au/writing-life/news/ausvotesarts-the-federal-election

For more information

The minutes of the meeting are attached here.

National Arts Sector Meeting and National Arts Election Debate

Save the date for the following arts sector events coming up in June…

National Arts Sector Meeting

Arts House North Melbourne Town Hall
TUESDAY 7 JUNE 2016 – 12.45pm – 5.00pm

ArtsPeak are organising a National Arts Sector Meeting in Melbourne on 7th June – the day before the National Arts Election Debate.

They hope that sector reps from across the country will be able to make it Melbourne for the meeting (and the Debate the following day). The agenda will include a discussion about the recent Australia Council funding outcomes, some best-practice advocacy between now and election day, and some preparation for the following day’s debate.

Space is limited – please book early. https://www.trybooking.com/LGNW

More info: contact@artspeak.net.au

National Arts Election Debate

The Wheeler Centre – Melbourne
WEDNESDAY 8 JUNE 2016  1.00pm – 3.00pm

ArtsPeak is organising a National Arts Election Debate in Melbourne on 8 June. The debate will bring the arts leaders of each of the major parties together to share their big ideas. They will also respond to the burning questions of leaders and commentators from across the industry.

Patricia Karvelas (ABC and Sky News) will moderate a three-cornered contest: Arts Minister Senator Mitch Fifield has been invited (and looking positive); Shadow Arts Minister Mark Dreyfus and Greens Arts Spokesperson Adam Bandt are already confirmed.

The debate will be live streamed – details soon – and broadcast on ABC Books & Arts the following Monday.

Space is limited so book early. https://www.trybooking.com/LGBQ

Future Melbourne - HAVE YOUR SAY

During March 2016, the City of Melbourne is calling for ideas on the future of our capital city through the Future Melbourne website.

What’s important to you about the future of arts, culture and the creative industries in the city? Do you want to see more funding for artists? Or quick response travel grants? Do you believe in the power of peer assessment? Or want to see more places and spaces for artists to make or show their work?

It’s up to all of us to let City of Melbourne know what we think they should keep, what we think they should do differently,  and what we think they should grow.

CALL TO ACTION! Very few artists and arts organisations have contributed to the consultation so far. But it’s important that we all have our say to make sure the arts stay on the agenda.

We encourage all our members to log onto the Future Melbourne website before the end of March to make sure the voice of the arts will be heard.

How to have your say

VOTE: Log onto the Future Melbourne website to give a thumbs-up (or thumbs-down) to other people’s ideas.

SUGGEST: Got an idea that’s not written down? Log onto the Future Melbourne website to share your thoughts.

SURVEY: You can also provide feedback on the vision and goals of the current community plan, Future Melbourne (2008), by taking an online survey.

The clock is ticking. Make sure you have your say before the end of March. It only takes a few minutes to make a big difference.

Victoria’s Creative Industries Taskforce Report- HAVE YOUR SAY

The Arts Industry Council of Victoria (AICV) welcomes the release of the “Creative State Global City” creative industries taskforce report and the opportunity to contribute to the next stage of the State’s first Creative Industries Strategy.

Minister Martin Foley is currently asking for feedback on the report, which is due by 20 December 2015.

At our recent meeting with the Minister, he encouraged AICV members to provide feedback on the 42 initiatives and to continue to lobby their local members about the importance of indexation and investment in the lead-up to the 2016 budget.

You can provide feedback on the 42 initiatives on the Creative Industries Strategy website.

Or contact Creative Victoria by:

E-mail: creative.strategy@ecodev.vic.gov.au
Post: Creative Industries Strategy, Creative Victoria, PO Box 4509, Melbourne Vic 3001.

AICV’s response is attached here for your information and use.

AICV Members' Meeting, November 2015

Our final AICV Members’ Meeting for 2015 took place on Tuesday 10 November. The discussion included:

Victoria’s Creative Industries Strategy

Report that will be presented to the Minister this month. The document will be a report from the Task Force to the Minister, not a Strategy.

Unlikely to see an actual strategy or budget recommendations until early next year.

Creative Victoria review of Organisations Investment Program (OIP)

Creative Victoria provided a briefing to AICV this week on the outcomes of the OIP evaluation. Full details will be announced by the end of November.

Federal Arts Funding

A National Arts Sector Roundtable took place in Sydney last Friday. Minister Fifield announced that it is likely that some of the funding will be returned to the Australia Council from the NPEA. Announcement is expected on Friday 20 November.

The first NPEA round with the remaining funding will be announced in 2016.

Senate Inquiry hearings are now complete. Reports will be announced by the end of the month.

For more information

The minutes of the meeting are attached here.

Draft NPEA Guidelines

The Federal Government’s Ministry for the Arts is calling for feedback on its recently released draft guidelines for the National Program for Excellence in the Arts (NPEA).

The deadline is 5.00pm AEST Friday 31st July. You are encouraged to send your comments to nationalexcellenceprogram@arts.gov.au

To make your response 

STEP 1

Read the draft NPEA Guidelines here

For a summary of NPEA background information, objectives, grant streams and criteria, and a guide to the issues go here.

STEP 2

Write a letter which provides:
- your credentials (as an independent artist or other arts professional, representative of an organisation, audience member, arts supporter, arts educator etc)
- the experience on which you are basing your comments
- the areas of the guidelines that you think could be improved and how
- your contact details (though you can choose to respond anonymously if you wish).

STEP 3

Attach your letter to an email and send by the deadline 5.00pm AEST Friday 31st July to nationalexcellenceprogram@arts.gov.au

AICV Council Meeting, June 2015

Our second AICV Council Meeting for 2015 took place on Tuesday 28 July.  The discussion included:

Victoria’s Creative Industries Strategy

Creative Victoria staff are compiling responses from the consultation. A summary is due in September in order to inform the budget process.

Creative Victoria review of Organisations Investment Program and VicArts grants

Creative Victoria have commissioned consultants to undertake a review of its Organisations Investment Program and VicArts grants. AICV will be involved in the consultation in August.

Senate Inquiry into Federal Arts Funding and draft guidelines for the National Program for Excellence in the Arts

More than 2,260 submissions were made to the Senate Inquiry. To date, less than 150 of them are online.

Public hearings will be held in Melbourne in August, followed by Perth, Hobart, Brisbane and Sydney in September. Members are encouraged to attend.

Feedback on the draft guidelines for the National Program for Excellence in the Arts is due on Friday 31 July.

Victorian Creative Industries Strategy

The Victorian Government is calling on artists, arts-workers and audiences to contribute the State’s first Creative Industries Strategy.

The Minister for Creative Industries, Martin Foley, has launched a discussion paper, ‘Let’s get creative about Victoria’s future’ and invited anyone with a connection to the arts to respond.

The Arts Industry Council of Victoria (AICV) welcomes the release of the discussion paper and the opportunity for the sector to inform and drive development of the strategy.

Following a series of consultation exercises taking place over the next month, the new strategy will be developed by September in order to shape the next State budget in May 2016.

AICV members will support this process by helping access and activate the sector in order to make sure that our voices are heard.

Why ‘Creative Industries’?

The arts now sit within the new mega-department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources (along with agriculture, public transport, energy, ports, tourism, roads and small business) and are being considered as one strand of the State’s broader creative industries.

This change has already seen Arts Victoria merge with Film Victoria and Multimedia Victoria into a new agency (now called Creative Victoria) and taking on the additional remits of video games, graphic design, fashion, film, architecture, advertising, media, music, comedy and craft.

Initial concern that inclusion within a ‘creative industries’ context could reduce any discussion of the arts to its economic impact have been somewhat waylaid by the discussion paper, which begins with a solid value statement and includes a focus on the artistic, cultural and social potential of Victoria’s creative industries, in addition to their significant economic contribution.

Have your say

Anyone who is engaged with or interested in the creative industries can respond to the discussion paper by 5pm on Friday 17 July 2015.

There are several different ways you can contribute:

1. Submit your comments, ideas and responses online.

You can choose to respond to the entire Discussion Paper or any of the individual themes.

You can add your own bite-sized suggestions on the strategy website, or add your vote to what other people have had to say. Bold, provocative and creative responses are encouraged.

You are also welcome to copy and paste from AICV’s response (attached).

2. Attend a public workshop and share your ideas.

21 consultation workshops will take place over five weeks, including 7 public forums to take place in Ballarat, Shepparton, Sale, Werribee, Frankston and Melbourne’s CBD during June and July.

All information, including how to register, can be found on the Creative Industries Strategy website.

Get along to one of the workshops and make sure your ideas get down on paper!

3. Use the #GetCreativeVic hashtag to join the conversation on Twitter or Facebook

4. Spread the word

It’s important that we all contribute and encourage others to do so. So help spread the word far and wide – to help us make sure the voice of the sector is heard.

5. Join the AICV community of over 7,000 small to medium and independent sector professionals (it’s FREE!)

Federal Budget and Australia Council funding cuts

Several Arts Industry Council members have expressed concern about the reallocation of arts funding announced in May’s Federal Budget.

With no reduction to funding to the 28 major performing arts organisations, it is likely to be the small to medium arts sector and independent artists who will bear the brunt of these changes.

The issue has now been referred to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee for a Senate inquiry.

To make sure the voices of our sector are heard, we ask you to make a submission to the Senate Inquiry by Friday 17 July 2015.

Have your say

Your submission can take any form: written, illustrated, audio, video etc. If you have already written a letter or contributed to the #FreeTheArts campaign, that can also form the basis of your submission. Here’s some tips to get you started.

1. Read the Inquiry Terms of Reference. You can choose to address all of the terms or choose just one or two that affect you most.
2. Look at examples of other submissions
3. Write / draw / record your own submission. This could include:

1. • Your credentials or connection to the sector (for example, as an independent writer, artist or arts-worker, representative of an organisation, reader, participant or audience member, educator, etc).
   • Your thoughts on the Federal Government’s arts funding cuts in the 2014 and 2015 Budgets.
   • Your personal experience of Federal arts funding and/or how engagement in the literary sector or arts world has benefited you in general.
   • The potential impact of these budget decisions on you and your work, the broader literary sector or arts community.

   Send your submission by Friday 17 July to legcon.sen@aph.gov.au or post to: Committee Secretary, Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee, PO Box 6100, Parliament House, Canberra ACT 2600

1. Spread the word. It’s important that people within and outside of the arts sector contribute to the inquiry. Tell your friends and family that this issue is important to you, ask them to sign the online petition or make their own submission. Or you can join the conversation on Twitter or Facebook using the #FreeTheArts hashtag.

If you want to take it further, you can send a copy of your submission to your local Federal MP, Mark Dreyfus, Senator Brandis, the Prime Minister and your local newspaper.

You can also provide feedback on the draft guidelines for the new National Programme for Excellence. Submissions are due by Friday 31 July.

AICV Members' Meeting, May 2015

Our first AICV Members’ Meeting for 2015 took place on Tuesday 26 May.

Among other things, the meeting discussed the Arts Industry Council’s support of the State Government’s new Creative Industries Strategy and the changes to Australia Council funding.

The minutes of the meeting are attached here.

AICV Response: Australian Sex Party

Arts Priorities Response: Napthine Government

AICV Response: Victorian Greens

AICV Response: Victorian Labor

Victoria’s arts industry is a key strength of the state’s culture, economy and liveability.

Successive governments have invested in the arts through the creation and operation of flagship institutions; through comprehensive policy frameworks in portfolio areas such as arts, education, health, regional development and innovation; as well as through the development and support of independent artists, arts organisations, audiences and artistic endeavour.

An arts strategy for a state of the arts is the only way to ensure that public investment in the arts will yield the very best outcomes for all Victorians. Stronger coordination between government and industry is required in order to progress and nurture this important arts ecology.

The industry calls upon the Victorian Government to secure the state of the arts in Victoria through the following four strategies: LEAD, INVEST, EMPOWER and BROKER. Download the 4 page document here.

AICV - Members' Meeting March 2014 Outcomes

The March Members’ meeting included:

• AICV – Council update. Update on recent work and meetings.
•  National update – current arts policy issues: ArtsPeak National, Australia Council Strategic Plan, National Local Government Forum, and the national digital platform.
• Special guest speaker Joel Murray, The Australian Sex Party.  Joel provided a brief overview of the party’s arts policies.
• 2014 Victorian State Election – arts priorities consultation continued. As Victoria heads towards an election in November, the Arts Industry Council is talking to members regarding needs and priorities for the sector. We will be using feedback from our consultations with members to inform our policy direction and shape our advocacy to all parties over the coming months.

AICV - Members' Meeting May 2013 Outcomes

The AICV May Members Meeting was held at Melbourne Museum, and attended by around 20 AICV members. The agenda included three key discussions: feedback on the Arts Victoria Organisations Investment Program; the proposed Victorian Arts and Culture Strategy; and the impact of the recent state budget on the arts in Victoria. A letter was written on behalf of the members to Arts Victoria, with feedback from the meeting.

Arts Victoria Organisational Funding Review - AICV Discussion Paper Response

AICV facilitated a meeting 8 June 2012 with members and key stakeholders to inform the AICV’s Discussion Paper Response. While each respective organisation planned to develop its own response to the Discussion Paper, there were four commonalities that the meeting recognised:

1. The meeting was unanimous in its support of the development of a State Arts Policy, providing governance to Arts Victoria’s programs including the Organisations Funding Program.
2. The meeting noted that the Organisations Funding Program is significantly underfunded, with the success of the Review reliant on an appropriate level of investment by government.
3. The meeting was concerned that the models proposed in the Discussion Paper were too reductive and could therefore limit the opportunity for applicants to demonstrate innovation, new models, cross-sectorial approaches and collaboration. The meeting believed that applicants could potentially meet several of the criteria in each of the proposed models, so a less rigid, more flexible set of criteria is preferred.
4. The meeting reaffirmed that the sector welcomed change and the undertaking of the Review. The AICV’s final submission reflected and elaborated on these main points as well as providing commentary on other points raised in the Paper.