Profiles

 Trevor Harwood, SAE Institute

How have you been involved with Melbourne Fringe? And what was the best thing about your experience?

I work as the head of film for SAE Institute Melbourne; SAE is a past partner of the Melbourne Fringe Festival. 

What made you interested in the Arts and how did you begin your career? Can you tell us a bit about your current role?

I have always been interested in film production. My grandfather Keith Harwood was one of the first drive-in projectionists in Australia.  You could say that his passion for film transferred to myself when I was born. I started off in this industry as an editor then I enrolled in a Film course at SAE Institute.  It was there that my true passion for the film industry matured.  I am currently running the Film Department at SAE – Melbourne Campus, while also running my own Production Business.

What role (if any) did education play in helping you work in the arts? 

The education and my experience at SAE, has increase my knowledge and professionalism within the film industry.  More importantly, the contacts that I have gained from SAE with the industry are priceless.

Can you tell us about an arts project or moment that you’re most proud of and why?

My proudest moment and project that I have worked on, would have been a short film in which I was the producer at SAE.  Unfortunately, while studying at SAE I lost my mother to cancer.  All my lecturers and class mates came to my mother’s funeral, and then 2 weeks later we were all on set making a short film.

I am also on my 3rd draft of a feature length film which I hope to go into production within the next 2 years.  

What advice would you give to people wanting to be involved in the arts in Melbourne?

My piece of advice would be to chase your dream of being a Director, or D.O.P with everything you have.  You must be passionate about this industry, and if you are, the success will come with that passion.

My most memorable involvement with the Melbourne Fringe was my participation, way back in 2001, in Spencer Tunick’s nude photograph shoot of 4000 Melbournians on Princes Bridge.  It’s an experience that could well find its way into my fiction.

What made you interested in the Arts and how did you begin your career? Can you tell us a bit about your current role?

Like many writers, I loved reading as a child, and equally typically I was always better at writing than at other pursuits, so in some ways you could say that writing chose me.  I began my first novel at the age of 11, and while that particular project didn’t get very far I’ve been writing fiction of one kind or another ever since.  For a fuller description of my career to date, including information about my novel The Zookeeper’s War, you can visit my website at www.stevenconte.com/. 

What role (if any) did education play in helping you work in the arts? 

My undergraduate degree was in Professional Writing (at the University of Canberra), and during my PhD in Creative Writing at the University of Melbourne, where I wrote most of The Zookeeper’s War, I was lucky enough to receive a postgraduate scholarship.   In the last two decades, universities have increasingly provided the kind of support and patronage for emerging writers which in the 1970s and early ‘80s and was provided by government, and so the mercenary explanation for my university career is that I’ve been following the money.  Of course, along the way I’ve learned a bit about thinking, and I’ve also enjoyed the friendship and support of other writers.

Can you tell us about an arts project or moment that you’re most proud of and why?

At the launch of The Zookeeper’s War in 2007 at the Melbourne Writers’ Festival, a scuffle broke out at the door of the Malthouse Theatre’s Bagging Room when bouncers tried to turn people away due to fears that the timber floor might collapse.  Since then, the novel has been shortlisted for the 2008 Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for first novels, and for the 2008 inaugural Prime Minister’s Literary Award for fiction.  In November 2008 the novel will be published in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

What advice would you give to people wanting to be involved in the arts in Melbourne?

Apart from an adequate level of talent, the key to getting anywhere in writing is persistence, and I’d guess that this is equally true in other fields of the arts.  Fifteen years elapsed between my first serious attempt at a novel and eventual publication.  Along the way, I submitted my work for various grants and mentorships, and in addition to some harsh rejections I had successes that led to further opportunities, so it’s important to keep fearlessly putting your work into the world.  There are many people with sufficient talent to be writers, but I suspect that you need some kind of kink of personality to press on with an endeavour that – from a financial perspective, at least – is almost certainly irrational.

John Irving, Fringe Dweller

How have you been involved with Melbourne Fringe? And what was the best thing about your experience?

I love art, and the Fringe supports and promotes art, artists and festivals.  The best things I’ve seen are the Fringe Furniture and art exhibitions

What made you interested in the Arts and how did you begin your career? Can you tell us a bit about your current role?

I’m interested in Art because I teach, and as a Head of Art at Beaconhills College believe its important to keep informed and involved in creativity.

What role (if any) did education play in helping you work in the arts? 

I’m a trained teacher and was inspired by great teachers, teachers who were passionate and supportive.

Can you tell us about an arts project or moment that you’re most proud of and why?

At the moment I’m making a mosaic sofa for my school.  I’m also on the selection panel for Top Arts, something that is very important and is the benchmark for excellence for all VCE students.

What advice would you give to people wanting to be involved in the arts in Melbourne?

GET INVOLVED, do, get your hands dirty.  You never know where creativity and education will lead you.

I came on board as the Administrator in early 2007 and became the Independent Program Producer in late November the same year.  The best thing has easily been getting to meet so many wonderful artists and making many friends.

What made you interested in the Arts and how did you begin your career? Can you tell us a bit about your current role?

I was interested in the arts because I break out in a rash everytime I hear someone talk about ‘shareholders’.  I got involved in the contemporary visual arts and music scenes at night and figured that there must be a way to spend my days doing something similar. I started working on several projects with friends and then I went back to university to further my skills.  Currently I help run a festival with over 290 shows, consisting of thousands of artists at various stages of their careers.

What role (if any) did education play in helping you work in the arts? 

My undergraduate course was in Fine Art Photography.  Art School was like a brain explosion, particularly being surrounded by hundreds of individuals, all pursuing different ways of making their art.  My Post Graduate Arts Management course made me look better to potential employers.

Can you tell us about an arts project or moment that you’re most proud of and why?

I’m most proud of a feature length documentary that a few friends and I made.  We shot, edited, wrote and produced it.  It took up a few years of my life, yet it still entertains me today.  Seeing a thousand people queuing down the street on opening night was surreal.

What advice would you give to people wanting to be involved in the arts in Melbourne?

Simply get out there and do something. Volunteer at a gallery, go to a gig, organise something with friends, just simply turn up and talk to people and opportunities will arise.

I’ve been involved with Melbourne Fringe on and off since 1987! I was a volunteer, then performed, directed, was a Project Coordinator in 1994 and later became the Festival Director for the 2001 & 2002 Festivals. Even now I feel a special connection to the place and will keep hanging out in the corridors until someone asks me to leave!

What made you interested in the Arts and how did you begin your career? Can you tell us a bit about your current role?

If the truth be told, I was a three year old tap dancer and spent a lot of my childhood in dance studios. Pantomime is my first language. Then I followed the usual route of school plays, university student theatre and then went to the Victorian College of the Arts Drama School to do the Animateuring course.

Right now, I’m the Artistic Director of FULL TILT at the Arts Centre and the Program Manager for Creative Development. What that means is that I work a lot with independent artists and small / medium sized companies who are creating their own original work and I try to find ways to support the development of their ideas. And then program them into the Arts Centre venues. It’s pretty much my dream job.

What role (if any) did education play in helping you work in the arts? 

A big role - although educational qualifications aren’t enough by themselves, you have to follow it up with some street-smarts. My VCA training was essential in getting started. Job offers didn’t come flying at me upon graduation, but the training gave me the sense of confidence to have a go. More recently I went back to VCA to do my Masters in Animateuring by Research. I felt after a decade of freelance project work it was time to refresh my knowledge base and feel challenged again. You never stop learning.

Can you tell us about an arts project or moment that you’re most proud of and why?

There are lots. One would be seeing 4,500 people get naked for Fringe in 2001 for the Spencer Tunick photo. It was a surreal conclusion to a conversation in the Fringe kitchen 6 months earlier where I said “wouldn’t it be cool if we asked this guy to Melbourne”. And then the whole team made it happen. Quintessential Fringe can-do attitude.

The other one would be building the relationship between the Arts Centre and Melbourne Fringe.  It’s my not-so-secret mission.

What advice would you give to people wanting to be involved in the arts in Melbourne?

See lots of it. Get a perspective on how broad and diverse the arts in Melbourne are.

Volunteer for something – one of the festivals, a big event. It’s the best way to work out what you want to do and how it’s done.