From avant-garde fashion to projects marking the centenary of WW1, 2014-15 was a year of diversity and dynamism for Victoria’s creative and cultural agencies.
The annual reports for Victoria’s nine state-owned creative and cultural agencies were tabled in Parliament this week, reflecting a year of achievement and acclaim both at home and abroad.
The reports show that the state’s cultural institutions - Arts Centre Melbourne, Melbourne Recital Centre, State Library of Victoria, Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Geelong Performing Arts Centre, Museum Victoria and National Gallery of Victoria - welcomed 10.2 million visitors across the year, including more than 575,000 students who participated in education programs.
Melbourne Recital Centre and the State Library of Victoria each achieved record numbers of visitors. Attendances at the NGV - which hosted the Australian-exclusive summer exhibition The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier - exceeded 2.2 million, the highest figure in more than a decade.
Volunteers continue to provide the backbone of the creative sector. They devoted a record 103,816 hours of service - the equivalent of 37 years of work - to Victoria’s cultural institutions. The public’s strong connections with these agencies also continued, with a record 48,539 members reported.
Film Victoria invested in 54 local film, television and games projects generating an additional 6,566 employment opportunities for the state. Projects ranged from Joselyn Moorhouse’s feature film The Dressmaker, shot in Melbourne, the Wimmera and the You Yangs; special effects work by local practitioners on Hollywood blockbusters including Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ted 2; and support for the development of 12 original games.
The 2014-15 financial year was one of the most successful for Docklands Studios since the Victorian Government assumed ownership in 2008, with the studios being used for projects including the US television miniseries Childhood’s End. The studios also continued to be used extensively for domestic television, hosting productions such as Channel Nine’s The Footy Show and Millionaire Hot Seat, and the Seven Network’s drama series Winners and Losers.
This the first year that Victoria’s nine cultural and creative agencies have reported as part of the new Creative Industries portfolio. Overseen by Creative Victoria, these agencies provide leadership to the state’s arts, culture, screen, design and games sectors.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Creative Industries Martin Foley
“We’ve got a lot to be proud of in Victoria. We are home to the country’s leading cultural facilities and they continue to be embraced by millions of Victorian and visitors. This past year offered an extraordinary array of programs, featuring the best local, Australian and international talents.”
“These impressive results in 2014-15 reflect the quality and diversity of activities and services offered by our cultural agencies and creative industries, and the central role creativity plays in the lives of all Victorians.”
“The Andrews Labor Government is working with some of Australia’s leading figures to create a plan for the future of our creative industries.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020