Who Are Wellington’s Missing Creative Voices?
Wellington – our cool little capital that hums with creativity. Yet, who are some of our unsung leaders making an impact?
Future Dragonz and NZ Asian Leaders (Wellington branches) will facilitate SHIFTING THE SCENE – a cross-sector leadership conversation that connects pan-Asian creative practitioners with business minds, public sector changemakers and non-profit organisations to explore the identity, imagination and inclusion of these voices in our city’s creative sector.
Designed as a panel discussion, SHIFTING THE SCENE is an initial conversation into how pan-Asian creative voices could contribute to shaping a better shared future for our region of Aotearoa. It will take place on April 12 at the Cuba Street office of Greater Wellington Regional Council.
“When Chelsea and I individually moved to Wellington, we found ourselves seeking out Pan-Asians whose experiences converged and diverged from ours. Despite making up the third largest ethnic group (15.1% - Census 2018) in New Zealand, Asians, across the Diaspora, remain under-represented in arts, leadership, government, media and business,” says Jess Wong, spokesperson for Future Dragonz and NZ Asian Leaders.
“SHIFTING THE SCENE is a timely opportunity to shift the conversation dial and learn from the wisdom of pan-Asian creatives who are leading, living and breathing the creativity that makes our region of Aotearoa unique,” she adds.
Our four Wellington-based creatives, each with heritage ties to cultures across the Asian Diaspora, will dive into the politics of identity, representation, and what it means to be “Asian” in 21st Century Aotearoa:
Rose Lu (Author of All Who Live on Islands)
Bobby Stannard (Animator at PikPok and short filmmaker)
Vanessa Mei Crofskey (Director - Enjoy)
Prabha Ravi QSM JP (Founder – Natraj School of Dance)
Chaired by Chelsea Wong (Musician, IP lawyer) of Future Dragonz and NZ Asian Leaders.
Following the panel section, we warmly invite thoughtful questions from the audience.
We acknowledge this is an emergent space. In these disruptive times, we believe that shining a spotlight on the potential and participation of pan-Asian creative practitioners will help generate more dialogue, openness and legitimacy to build capacity and foster thought leadership for the region’s creative and cultural sectors.
Together, let’s imagine a more socially inclusive and creatively bright future for our capital.
Mon 12 April / 5.30pm–7.30pm / Greater Wellington Regional Council / 100 Cuba Street, Te Aro
Entry is gratis. Limited seats. We encourage early bookings to avoid disappointment: https://bit.ly/3w1xToy
For those unable to attend in-person, this event will also be livestreamed (except audience Q&A).