NIDA announces new regional program: NIDA CONNECT

NIDA today announced a brand-new national learning program designed and dedicated to outer metropolitan and regional communities across Australia. NIDA CONNECT will launch over the next few months and provide a wide range of creative opportunities across live and digital storytelling.

NIDA CONNECT will be available to young adults, across six states and territories, offering open access to skills development and specialist training. The project is designed and delivered by NIDA OPEN and is made possible by the Restart Investment to Sustain and Expand (RISE) Fund – an Australian Government initiative.

NIDA CEO Liz Hughes:

We are very grateful for the support from the Federal Government for this new national program. NIDA will connect outer metropolitan and regional Australians to creative industry practice and training by delivering free introductory skills development courses for young people and provide creative opportunities for local teaching artists.

NIDA CONNECT is an exciting development in NIDA’s offering and we are thrilled to partner with some incredible arts companies all around Australia to deliver this comprehensive program of training.

NIDA CONNECT has partnered with a wide range of arts companies around the country:

• Katherine Regional Arts and Corrugated Iron Youth Arts in the Northern Territory
• Goolarri Media and Theatre Kimberley in Western Australia
• JUTE Theatre Company in Queensland
• City of Onkaparinga in South Australia
• Roxy Institute of Performing Arts (RipA) in New South Wales
• South West Local Learning & Employment Network (SWLLEN) and Swan Hill Rural City Council in Victoria

NIDA CONNECT will offer six skills development short courses through face-to-face and online delivery.

These courses will equip participants to enter the creative industries and ease pathways to ongoing training. The courses will be delivered in a flexible format suited to the needs of each arts community partner. The courses cover skills areas of:

Acting

An introduction to a broad range of fundamental acting skills through practical workshop exercises. Explore improvisation, spontaneity, physicality, and the key principles of the Stanislavski system using a variety of texts.

Design in Performance

An introduction to the principles of creating design concepts for the stage. Learn how to develop original costume and set design ideas and simple construction techniques.

Digital Storytelling

An introduction to the principles of visual storytelling through a digital lens. Explore techniques to develop a concept, work with source materials and write and storyboard your own unique multimedia stories. Develop hands on shooting, editing and postproduction skills in a practical digital storytelling context.

Introduction to Film and Television Production

An introduction into the key processes of screen production. Explore screenplays and formatting and gain insight into the process of pre-production. Learn crew roles and on set protocols and experiment with implementing visual storytelling as you shoot your own scenes. Discover the creative possibilities as you learn how to edit your footage.

Writing for Performance

Explore fundamental story principles and techniques to develop character and dialogue through the practice of writing scenes and exploring them in performance. Identify and develop essential skills required to write a short script. Create a synopsis for a short stage play or film.

Technical Production

Explore the ‘magic’ of theatre that relies on a team of skilled stage managers, mechanists and lighting and sound operators. Develop your skills in these departments through this practical introduction to the various roles, equipment, and production processes.

To complement and support the NIDA CONNECT activity, there will be three additional programs:

• NIDA TEACHER TRAINING which will deliver comprehensive training programs for local artists. Once they have completed the paid program these local artists will be employed as NIDA teaching artists to deliver the six NIDA CONNECT skills development courses in their local community.
• NIDA PRODUCTION STREAMING will provide free streaming access of NIDA student productions to selected secondary schools. These productions can be viewed at schools or in community cinemas and theatres, providing high quality entertainment for regional communities.
• NIDA SCHOOLS WORKSHOPS will then complement the streaming of the NIDA student productions, with a 2-hour, curriculum-linked workshop package for secondary schools. The workshop will investigate the themes and skills in the chosen streamed production.