SA Cultural Observatory to share research at workshops

The workshops are designed to enable artists and industry players to understand the role that cultural and creative industries play in transformation, job creation, social cohesion and growth and development.

SACO held similar workshops in Welkom, Paarl, Upington, Mafikeng, Vereeniging and Tzaneen last year in support of the creative and cultural industries (CCIs) and the research community working on arts, cultural and heritage projects.

The SACO team will make its first stop at the Witbank Civic Theatre in Emalahleni, Mpumalanga province, on 27 November followed by another workshop at Nahakwe Lodge in Mamaila, Limpopo province, on 29 November.

Interested creative players can register here to attend the Mpumalanga workshop and here to be part of the Limpopo event.

“The workshops are an important part of connecting with the industry and also sharing critical research, which will help support everyone working in the creative sphere,” SACO executive director Unathi Lutshaba said. “We have a strong bedrock of data that the industry can use but we are also looking forward to the next five years of research we are mandated to do.

“This means we need to discuss the most pressing industry issues with everyone involved, so people working in the industry are able to shape the research debates and direction. We also encourage practitioners, policymakers and planners to attend the workshop to understand the role the CCIs play in growth and development, job creation, transformation and social cohesion.”

SACO, a research arm of the Department of Arts and Culture, will emply the workshops to cover the following topics:

• An introduction to SACO and its research.
• An overview of the National Research Agenda.
• The importance of intellectual property in the creative industries.
• The challenges and opportunities for artists and creatives.
• Insights from marketing, business and best-practices experts.

Last year, SACO launched the South African Festival Economic Calculator to allow South African festival and event organisers to track the economic impact of their events.