Sara Black

Committee Secretary Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee PO Box 6100 Parliament House Canberra ACT 2600

Dear Madam/Sir,

Re: Impact of the 2014 and 2015 Commonwealth Budget decisions on the Arts I am writing to express my concerns regarding the recent changes to Federal Arts Funding. In May 2015, Senator Brandis cut $104.8 million from the Council for the Arts to start the National Program for Excellence in the Arts (NPEA). This was done without any consultation with the Arts sector. It is now clear that the shift of these funds to a ministerially run program, as apposed to an arms-length funding system, will have an extremely negative impact on independent artists and small to medium companies across the entire Australian arts sector. It has become apparent since the announcement of the NPEA guidelines that independent artists are not eligible to apply. The guidelines also state that small to medium organisations cannot apply for organisational support. With the requirements for the Australia Council of the Arts to continue it’s current level of funding to the Major Performing Arts (MPA) companies it is clear that the $104.8 million to be taken from the Australia Council for the Arts will have to be sourced from the funds currently allocated to supporting the independent sector and the small to medium companies, the same area of industry that is ineligible to apply to the NPEA. I am a freelance contemporary dancer, teacher and choreographer and have been working professionally in the performing arts industry for over ten years. During this time, I have taught in many different areas of the community and have worked both nationally and internationally with a plethora of critically acclaimed independent artists in dance and theatre as well as small to medium companies including Chunky Move, Lucy Guerin inc and Not yet it’s Difficult. Through the works of these artists I have toured extensively and have represented Australia in many international festivals and programs. We have shown an abundance of ground breaking work throughout China, Mexico, Brazil, , Denmark, India, , Ireland, Korea, New Zealand, , Taipei, Italy, , Holland, Poland, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, The , and The United States of America consistently over the last ten years. This level of engagement and cultural exchange is at great risk if small to medium companies and independents are not adequately supported. The majority of this international exchange comes from this sector as these companies present more culturally diverse, cost effective, and original Australian work.

Australian dance has a phenomenal reputation worldwide. I have performed in many Australia focused dance festivals and on each occasion it has been independents and smaller companies programmed. To consider that our strongest dance exports such as Australian Dance Theatre, Lucy Guerin inc, Chunky Move, Stephanie Lake, Antony Hamilton and Sean Parker, could lose their federal funding caused by this change to the arts budget is heartbreaking, shameful and uncalled for. It is abundantly clear that there is an incredible lack of understanding in how the arts sector operates as a whole and there has been insufficient research from the government throughout this decision-making. As an artist, the types of engagements I have had with our major performing arts companies (The Australian Ballet, Sydney Dance Company, Bangarra Dance Theatre and Belvoir) have been in the roles of guest dancer, choreographer and teacher. It is clear that that these larger companies regularly rely on the skills of artists from all areas of the industry and highly value their multitude of experiences. If there is a starvation of funds to one area of the sector it will not be long before it affects the industry as a whole. This is particularly the case when it comes to youth companies. Before my professional engagements I was a member of QL2, a youth dance company in Canberra which fosters young dancers, encouraging creative expression and technical training in the field. Many artists would not take their path into the industry without connection to community projects at a young age. This is the breeding ground for the next generation of practitioners. I have recently been speaking with young dancers aged 13 to 17 as well as recent university graduates who show a great concern for their future within the industry. I fear that the model that Minister Brandis has proposed will focus on ‘excellence’ at one end of an industry. To do so will hurt the arts sector at its most vital point, emerging and developing artists. A parallel in the sports sector would be to de- fund academy of sports programs and only support the current professionals that are at the height of their game. I fail to understand how this can be a sound investment strategy. The Arts Sector is an industry that employs over 311,000 and accounts for an estimated 7% of Australia’s economy, we will all notice when it starts to fall apart.

On behalf of our next generation;

Kind Regards,

Sara Black Australian Choreographer and Dancer