February 2010

• The Business of Events
• Greatest Assets
• Celebrate! Events Coming Soon
• Regional Spotlight
• Gold Coast Update
• Asia Pacific Screen Awards News

The Business of Events
Triathlons take the lead

The outstanding success of the Noosa and Mooloolaba triathlons shows that the sport is fast becoming part of Australia’s sporting vernacular.

Swim, bike, run. Since triathlon was introduced as an Olympic sport at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, this trinity of sport has exploded in popularity around the world, with official estimates of up to six million people competing in organised triathlons every year around the world.

Queensland’s Noosa Triathlon Multi Sport Festival and Mooloolaba Triathlon, owned and operated by USM Events and supported by Queensland Events, have been on a dramatic fast-track of growth and popularity over the past decade.

In just the fourth day of entries being open for the 2010 Mooloolaba Triathlon (26-28 March 2010), individual places were filled to capacity, despite an increase of 30 percent more available spaces than 2009, surpassing all previous records for participation.

The 2009 Noosa Triathlon – now the second largest triathlon in the Southern Hemisphere – saw over 8,000 competitors taking part. Accommodation in the region is now booked solid for the two-week period surrounding the festival, often years in advance.

Garth Prowd, Executive Chairman of USM Events, says the popularity of the triathlons is both exhilarating and challenging, with organisers working frantically to find more transition area to allow for hundreds of additional competitors at each event.

“We are now embarking on a five-year growth and development strategy for both events which will give us the ability to continue to grow participation numbers annually while still maintaining the high level of quality that our customers have come to expect,” Prowd says.

According to Prowd, the key to the phenomenal success of triathlon lies in the combination of Australia’s two most popular past-times – sport and the great outdoors.

“The triathlons are in these amazing, relaxed beachside locations, and they cater to Australian and international competitors from all levels – absolute novices to skilled elites racing towards the next Olympics,” Prowd says.

The mass participation and team components of triathlons are also cited as reasons for the sport’s popularity.

“It’s a very social sport,” says Queensland Events Acting Chief Executive, amateur triathlete and marathoner Stuart Craig.

“Training with a team, competing against your colleagues, and pushing your own endurance limits is a great experience,” he says.

The health factors of triathlon are unequalled by almost any other discipline. The combination of swimming, a non-weight bearing exercise, cycling which is marginally weight-bearing, and running, provides a great cardiovascular workout.

Deb Harding, who will this year compete for the second time in the Queensland Events-supported Julia Creek Dirt and Dust Triathlon, claims triathlon ‘transformed’ her.

“Triathlon saved my life, I suspect,” Deb says, who was ‘rescued’ after she got talking to multiple World Triathlon Champion Brad Bevan at Julia Creek one year.

“Before I even started to train I had to go into the Wesley Hospital’s rehab clinic to sort out back problems, iron levels, things which were really taking a toll on my health,” she says.

For Deb, the personal achievement of successfully completing the 2009 Julia Creek Dirt and Dust Triathlon and the 2009 Noosa Triathlon has been enhanced by losing almost 20kgs.

“Being somewhat backward in some respects I have recently completed a beginner’s tri course with Brad Bevan’s Croc Squad, and even though everyone still passes me, I can’t stop now,” Deb says.

Apparently the rest of the triathlon-mad world agrees with her.

Greatest Assets
Dr Judith McLean

Queensland Events and Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) director Dr Judith McLean (Adjunct Professor QUT Creative Industries) is a leader in the arts, cultural and educational sectors across Australia.

2010 brings a year of exciting challenges for Dr McLean, who has recently completed a ‘tree change’ to live full time on her property, Pinegrove Station, a working cattle farm and soon-to-be commercial tree farm located near Warwick.

“It’s a wonderful contrast with my arts career,” she says of her time at Pinegrove Station, which is home to some 400 head of cattle.

A passionate advocate of cultural and creative events, Dr McLean speaks highly of the mix of sporting and arts events on the Queensland Events calendar.

“Recently I attended Magic Millions, my first event in my capacity as a director of Queensland Events,” she says.

“The ambience on the Gold Coast – which was hosting a rodeo, a music festival and the Magic Millions races all in one weekend – was superb – and I even picked a few winners which meant we came home with money in our pockets,” she says.

While prizemoney is rarely a major component of non-sporting events, Dr McLean says she is hopeful of contributing towards a well-rounded calendar of major sporting and cultural arts events in Queensland.

Given her background however, it’s understandable for her to admit to having a favourite event.

“I am absolutely delighted to be appointed to the board of APSA,” Dr McLean says.

“The global platform from which it operates is a real testament to the diplomatic value of film in educating people and fostering cultural understanding and tolerance,” she says.

Previously Head of Drama at QUT (2003-2006), Dr McLean now works as a consultant in Creative Industries with a range of clients in both the private and public arenas.

She has held numerous senior positions throughout her career including Chair, Major Brisbane Festival (2003-2007); Chair, Queensland Theatre Company (1999-2003); Deputy Chair of the Australia Council’s Theatre Board and Director, Australian Major Performing Arts Group (AMPAG) (2000-2003).

Most recently she chaired the creation of a policy document entitled Horizons (2009-2014) which outlined future directions for children and young people in the Queensland arts and cultural sectors. She is also currently a committee member of the Queensland’s Creative Industries Leadership Group (2006-).

Celebrate! Events Coming Soon
ANZ Ladies Masters

Queensland can boast a piece of golfing history following confirmation that the 2010 ANZ Ladies Masters has secured the strongest field ever assembled for a golf tournament in this country.

The prestigious event, to be contested at the RACV Royal Pines Resort on the Queensland’s Gold Coast between 4 and 7 March, has confirmed the appearance of three of the four major champions from 2009.

This marks the first time in Australian golfing history that three current major champions will contest the same event on Australian soil. Kraft Nabisco Champion, American Brittany Lincicome, Women’s US Open Champion, South Korean Eun Hee Ji and McDonald's LPGA Championship winner and World No. 7, Swede Anna Nordqvist, will headline the star-studded field.

Supporting and challenging the current major champions will be a plethora of top 20 players from the Rolex Women’s World Golf rankings. These include World No. 3 Suzann Pettersen, World No. 6 Yani Tseng, South Korean Na Yeon Choi (No .12), our own World Golf Hall of Famer and six times Masters Champion Karrie Webb (No. 13), South Korean Song-Hee Kim (No. 14), European No. 1 and World No. 18 Sophie Gustafson.

The international players do not stop there, South Koreans Hee Young Park (36), Hee Kyung Seo (No. 42) and M.J Hur (No. 45), Americans Stacey Lewis (No. 47) and the flamboyant Christina Kim (No. 48) are all heading to the magnificent RACV Royal Pines Resort, most for the first time.

A field comprising eight of the top 20 and 15 of the top 50 world ranked players, is also an unprecedented statistic for an Australian professional golf tour event.

Three Australians have previously won the ANZ Ladies Masters. Webb is a six times champion, Jane Crafter won twice in the 90’s and Katherine Hull is the defending champion. Hull, Webb and fellow compatriots including World No. 28 Lindsey Wright, Nikki Campbell and Tamie Durdin, both of whom won on the LPGA of Japan in 2009, three time LPGA tournament winner Wendy Doolan, LET multiple title winners Nikki Garrett, Joanne Mills and Karen Lunn will be fighting to keep the title in Australian hands.

The established players will however need to look over their shoulders, as the tournament has a reputation of uncovering a rookie star who upstages the stars. Young Australian rising stars including Kristie Smith, Rebecca Flood, Leanne Bowditch, Kate Combes and Sarah Oh will be keen to repeat the efforts of 2006 champion, 16 year old Amy Yang, as they relish in the strongest field on the biggest stage of their fledgling careers.

No one will discount former World No. 1, winner of over 70 titles worldwide including three Ladies Masters titles, reigning Women’s Australian Open Champion and crowd favourite England’s Laura Davies, who will be as keen as ever to add another title to her unparalleled list of international victories.

The tournament will be shown on ONE HD on the Friday, then on Channel 10 on Saturday and Sunday and broadcast internationally to a reach of over 160 million households. Visit www.anzladiesmasters.com.au

Regional Spotlight
Reeling them in (By Carla Adams)

If there was an award for "World’s Most Uplifting Film Festival", Gympie’s Heart of Gold International Film Festival (HoGIFF) would surely be a star contender.

For its acceptance speech, HoGIFF would bounce onto the stage, grab the mike, and likely sing its appreciation to the amazing people of its hometown, tireless volunteers, organisers, new artistic director Malcolm Blaylock, and of course, the filmmakers.

Filmmaking is, after all, at the very heart of HoGIFF. This very unique short film festival, supported by the Queensland Events Regional Development Program, screens films that are entertaining, uplifting, thought-provoking and that express a positive view of the world and humanity. Now in its fourth year, it has become one of Gympie’s major tourism attractions.

Gympie-Cooloola Tourism manager Amanda LePeilbet says many visitors to the town combine a stay in the region with trips to nearby Fraser Island, and to other Sunshine Coast attractions.

“The Mary Valley, Tin Can Bay, and Rainbow Beach are nearby, so we encourage visitors to enjoy the Heart of Gold International Film Festival, then take off from Gympie to explore the region further,” she says.

In 2010, HoGIFF will feature 170 films from 19 different countries. The home nations are as diverse as Belgium and Bosnia, Nigeria and New Zealand, Scotland and Singapore. Canada, USA and Australia are also represented – the latter by 54 different films.

HoGIFF will include "meet the filmmaker" question and answer sessions at the end of a number of screenings. It’s a popular addition, as is the "Family Film Festival" held on Saturday and Sunday morning featuring PG or G-rated films chosen for their ability to delight kids and amuse parents.

Brisbane-based journalist Trent Dalton and director Frazer Bailey’s short film Glenn Owen Dodds (G.O.D.) about a chance meeting between two men, one of them claiming to be GOD (Glenn Owen Dodds), stars David Wenham (Public Enemies, Australia, 300, Lord of The Rings) and is an eagerly anticipated entry. The film has also been accepted into the prestigious Clermont-Ferrand film festival in France, the short-film equivalent to the Cannes Film Festival. Artistic Director Malcolm Blaylock says he has been amazed by the inventiveness and creativity behind each of the films selected for the 2010 program.

“They are great stories, and told so well,” says Blaylock.

Blaylock comes to HoGIFF after six years as Artistic Director of the Darwin Festival, and holds a curatorial role at annual St Kilda Film Festival. After spending the best part of a year travelling between Melbourne and Gympie, Blaylock feels he is an ‘unofficial local’, having experienced first-hand the community spirit which sets this film festival apart.

“Gympie has a particular flavour that reflects the entire region, that’s the attraction, we have something you can’t get anywhere else,” Blaylock says. (It also helps that, according to Blaylock, Gympie boasts ‘Melbourne-style’ coffee, at local haunt Emilia’s.)

“Festivals are a celebration of a community and society, and it’s apparent that one of HoGIFF’s great strengths is its enormous local support,” Blaylock says.

“Events like this don’t happen by themselves – there is a large volunteer base and a broad cross-section of people from Gympie are right behind it, encouraging visitors and other locals to join in the fun.”

Gympie-based teacher and artist Kym Barrett has volunteered for the third year in a row at HOGIFF, and says the festival unites the community.

“Each year HoGIFF has increased in significance, fulfilling the original universal vision of the founder, Toni Powell, which was ‘to touch the world with films that help us refocus our priorities, give us hope, make us smile and in doing so affect how we treat each other’,” Barrett says.

“The films shown at HoGIFF motivate people to treat those around them with more respect, compassion and humour,” she says.

“This wonderful effect is quite apart from the great economic boost the festival represents for our little community.”

So it seems that there are just as many thanking this festival for what is has contributed to their lives, as there are for HoGIFF – the world’s most uplifting film festival – to thank for its growing success.

Perhaps “At The Movies” presenter and 2007 HoGIFF Jury member Margaret Pomeranz summed it up best, when she said "The theme is amazing, perfect for this town... there is something magic about this festival".

Heart of Gold International Film Festival
Gympie
Web: www.heartofgold.com.au

Gold Coast Update
Japan Bound

Queensland runners Roxie Schmidt and Don Wallace will tackle the Osaka-based Senshu International City Marathon on 21 February.

Roxie and Don won the Queensland Marathon Championships as the first eligible Queensland female and male finishers in the Gold Coast Airport Marathon. In a barnstorming finish, 25-year-old Roxie from the Sunshine Coast finished as the second female overall in a personal best of 2:42:22. Roxie was the representative in Senshu also last year and went on to win the women’s race in 2:47:52.

Don, from Ferny Hills in Brisbane, placed 19th overall in 2:35:12 to take the honours as the 2009 Queensland Marathon Champion for men.

Both won entry into the Senshu International City Marathon to be held on 21 February 2010 and will fly in the comfort of Jetstar’s StarClass to assist their preparation. The prize is part of a sister marathon relationship forged between both events in 2002. The Senshu International City Marathon will send its male and female winners to the Gold Coast in July.

Two representative Gold Coast Airport Marathon runners have gone on to win the Senshu International City Marathon since the relationship was established – Schmidt in 2009 and Helen Stanton in 2006. Schmidt also holds the fastest time by an Australian woman at Senshu with her winning time last year.

Web: www.goldcoastmarathon.com.au

Asia Pacific Screen Awards Update
Promised Lands

A selection of winners and nominees in the Asia Pacific Screen Awards are currently screening at GoMa’s Australian Cinematheque as part of The Promised Lands cinema program in the 6th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT6)

Vimukthi Jayasundara’s Between Two Worlds, (Sri Lanka) 2009 APSA Nominee for Achievement in Directing and 2008 Winner for Best Animated Feature, Waltz with Bashir (Israel) are among the program. Promised Lands profiles cinematic and geopolitical relationships throughout the Indian subcontinent (Bangladesh, India, Kashmir, Pakistan, Sri Lanka) and across to West Asia and the Middle East (including Afghanistan, Armenia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Kurdistan, Lebanon, Palestine and Turkey).

Two major projects are presented at the Australian Cinémathèque for APT6: Promised Lands and The Cypress and the Crow: 50 Years of Iranian Animation. Three filmmakers are also included among the APT6 artists, and will be profiled with retrospective seasons during the exhibition: Takeshi Kitano (Japan), Ang Lee (Taiwan/USA), Rithy Panh (Cambodia/France).

Between Two Worlds (2009) Ages 15+
Nominated 2009 Asia Pacific Screen Awards
Achievement in Directing
DIRECTOR: Vimukthi Jayasundara
PROGRAM: Promised Lands - The Road to Jaffna
WHEN: 3:00pm Sat 13 Feb 2010 (86mins)
WHERE: Cinema A, GoMA

Waltz With Bashir (2008) Ages 15+
Winner 2008 Asia Pacific Screen Awards
Best Animated Feature Film
DIRECTOR: Ari Folman
PROGRAM: Promised Lands - Eating My Heart
WHEN: 6:00pm Fri 19 Feb 2010 (90mins)
WHERE: Cinema A, GoMA

Whisper with the Wind (2009) Ages 15+
Asia Pacific Screen Awards
Official Entry
DIRECTOR: Shahram Alidi
PROGRAM: Promised Lands - The Tree Of Life
WHEN: 6:00pm Fri 5 March 2010 (76mins)
WHERE: Cinema A, GoMA

GoMA’s Australian Cinémathèque is located at South Bank, Brisbane, Australia. Admission to film screenings is free.

For the full program and more information on the APT6 cinema program visit: www.qag.qld.gov.au/cinematheque

www.asiapacificscreenawards.com

Find out what's on and where
www.queenslandevents.com.au/events