So far at FAC

I’ve been at Fremantle Arts Centre for 7 days now spread over a number of weeks and have definitely learnt a lot from my experiences so far.  I have spent my time working on a variety of different events and assisting the head of communications, Kathryn Doust with a number of upcoming and continuing projects from developing media releases to researching effective distribution plans for brochures and fliers so that they reach the maximum amount of people.

In my second week at the Arts centre my main task was working on promoting the upcoming WAAPA showcase. This showcase was aimed at parents and students who attend John Curtin College of the Arts to showcase the comprehensive degrees that are offered at WAAPA. This showcase is also the only performance from WAAPA students south of the river. This was an interesting task for me to undertake as I could see the importance of targeting a large and diverse audience to ensure that an event is promoted not just through traditional print mediums that only reach people the read that newspaper or street publication but also through brochures and fliers which can reach people during their everyday activities such as getting a coffee or going to the library.   

Next I read through the April/June editions of FAC’s ‘What’s On’ and proof read/edited the brochure. I was the fourth person to proof read the brochure and I found it interesting just how much preparation goes into not only designing the booklet and filling its pages but ensuring that the information is correct and interesting for people to read.

In my fourth week I was updating the communications spread sheet which features individuals and arts centres from around the country that have previously applied for the annual print awards held by FAC. This entailed researching dozens of art centres and ensuring that the contact information was correct and that the people’s positions in the company hadn’t changed.  I was updating this spreadsheet so that people from around the country could be sent a ‘call for entry’ to the 2012 FAC Print Award. The FAC Print Award is now in its 38^th year and is Australia’s leading printmaking award, providing a place for thousands of young and emerging artists from across the country to have their art featured in FAC which attracts thousands of people a year.

In my fifth week I spent my time on Facebook researching the benefits of Timeline, the new Facebook lay out and how that will affect FAC. I read a myriad of articles on how Timeline was beneficial for businesses and found it really interesting how big a part social networks now play in public relations. I looked at big businesses that are embracing Timeline like Coca Cola and The New York Times and how they were using the new features to maximise the impact of their page. I thought some of the most interesting new features of Timeline for businesses were the ability to pin a post to the top of the page for 7 days to ensure that it gets maximum visibility with people who visit the page. Also for companies that have been around for a long time the ability to add ‘milestones’ allows a companies history to be shown making it not only seem like a company with something to consume but a institution of sorts, something that can definitely be seen on the Coca Cola page.  Timeline encourages creativity in social networking, something that businesses can embrace and adapt making there page unique and interesting for audiences.

Another job I was given to ensure that FAC's transfer to Timeline would be smooth was to write short paragraphs on half a dozen historical landmarks of Fremantle Arts Centre from its days as a mental asylum to its transformation into the Arts Centre that it is today.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my past few weeks at the arts centre and am looking forward to the new tasks and experiences that the next half of my industry placement will bring.