Alexa Strachan, chief executive officer of the Aardklop Arts Festival, was one of the specialists who inspired production managers and artists at the workshops.

Challenging economic conditions and a sometimes unfavourable political environment make it very hard for the arts, and especially arts festivals, to thrive in South Africa.

Although the popularity of these festivals is undeniable, with thousands of people attending them each year, production managers and artists have to find clever and creative ways to effectively manage very scarce resources.

 

Aardklop, one of the country’s most popular arts festivals, was the perfect platform for a series of four workshops on effective production management.

This bright idea was a collaboration involving Artéma, the Institute for Arts Management and Development on the NWU’s campus in Potchefstroom, Aardklop and the Afrikaans Language and Culture Association (ATKV).

 

Chris de Bruyn, manager of Artéma, says although it is the second year that this specific series of workshops has been held, Artéma has been involved with training at arts festivals such as Aardklop and the Klein Karoo National Arts Festival (KKNK) since 2004.

 

Lights, camera, action!

 

The workshops covered production management, technical aspects, logistics, budgets, marketing and copyright law in the South African context. “We are very proud to have had diverse presenters from various disciplines in the entertainment industry,” says Chris.

 

The impressive attendance roster represented the who’s who of the local arts industry. The specialists included Hugo Theart, acting CEO of the KKNK, Saartjie Botha, manager of the Stellenbosch University Woordfees, and Ismail Mohammed, CEO of the Market Theatre Foundation.

 

Alexa Strachan, CEO of the Aardklop Arts Festival, gave a presentation on what is expected of production managers and put the local arts festival scene in context.

 

Pieter-Jan Kapp, a professional production manager, Suzaan Keyter, KykNET’s publicity manager, Dietrich de Beer, consultant, and Wilmer Müller of WM Media, rounded off the list of expert speakers.

 

“In the end the message was clear – although there are many challenges, the art festivals have a place in South Africa,” Chris says. “Resources are becoming increasingly difficult to find, but with the right attitude, skills and perseverance, arts festivals can and will survive.”

 

For more information about next year’s workshops, send an email to chris.debruyn@nwu.ac.za.

Chris de Bruyn, manager of Artéma, believes that the workshops on effective production management will help to keep the stage lights on at arts festivals.