Festival Commons is an initiative that supports the next wave of IBPoC (Indigenous, Black and People of Colour) festival-makers, curators and cultural conveners in Greater Sydney and the Asia Pacific. Four participants from Greater Sydney and two participants from the Asia Pacific will be selected, forming the next intake of Festival Commons: a collective of cultural disruptors reshaping what festivals can be.
There will be a ten-day in-person lab from 15 – 25 January 2027, embedded within Sydney Festival’s 51st programme with masterclasses, roundtables, workshops and provocations with leading artistic and curatorial voices from across Australia and around the world. There will also be pre- and post-festival online sessions, peer-to-peer exchange and a growing network.
They invite applications from:
- Curators, producers, cultural organisers and creative workers who identify as IBPoC.
- People based in Greater Sydney (with a specific emphasis on Western Sydney), including those working in or alongside community.
- People based anywhere in the Asia Pacific. International participants are funded by Creative Australia, whose strategic priorities are Japan, Korea, Taiwan, mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, India and New Zealand. If you are based elsewhere in the Asia Pacific you can still apply, but get in touch if you have any questions.
- Those who may not identify as ‘leaders’ but are already leading from within the community, in informal or self-determined ways.
- People working in ways that are experimental, collective, community-driven and/or interdisciplinary.
- Those working outside institutions, or who’ve been overlooked by traditional leadership programmes.
Support
- Each participant receives 2,400 AUD. Australian participants will also receive superannuation.
- Flights, accommodation and per diems will be covered for international participants.
- Auslan interpreters, captioning, mobility support, cultural protocols and other access requirements will be shaped with and for participants.
