March 2010

• Greatest Assets
• Celebrate! Major Events
• Regional Spotlight
• Gold Coast Update
• Asia Pacific Screen Awards
• Find out what's on and where

Greatest Assets
Chris White - Queensland Events board member

A well-known name in the sports and talent management and marketing field, Chris, a former lawyer has pioneered the growth and forward direction of International Quarterback (IQ).

Now Australia’s leading boutique talent and sponsorship management consultancy, International Quarterback represents some of the country’s most accomplished elite athletes and personalities.

Chris posseses an unparalleled knowledge of the advertising and sponsorship landscape and has worked on projects including event management for Uncle Tobys Super Series, hospitality sales for the 2003 and 2011 Rugby World Cups, exclusive sales agent for the Football Federation of Australia from 2004 to 2008, sales agent for Magic Millions and various sponsorship consultancies for blue chip clients like Suncorp and Ford, assisting them in designing their sponsorship programs aligned to key objectives to maximise the effectiveness of the sponsorship.

Chris spent four and a half years on the board of Tourism Queensland (2005 – 2009) and was Chairman of the Audit Committee of TQ for over two years. In December 2009 Chris was appointed Chairman of the Gold Coast Events Company, which oversees the Governments arrangements with the Gold Coast Carnival and the Armorall Townsville 400 V8 Races.

Celebrate! Major Events
2010 Mooloolaba Triathlon

Swim, Bike, Run, Party is the mantra - and more than 3,500 competitors - including 500 'superkidz' are set to do just that at the 2010 Mooloolaba Triathlon.

On Saturday 27 March hundred’s of local and interstate kids will be gearing up for a whole lot of fun at this year’s Courier-Mail Superkidz Triathlon which forms part of the Mooloolaba Triathlon Festival program, held between Friday 26 – Sunday 28 March 2010.

USM Events Managing Director Garth Prowd said more kids were taking up the challenge every year - with 11,000 children having participated since 1994.

"They realise it's not about being the best, but giving it their best and having a whole lot of fun being active," said Prowd.

"It's an important initiative to help reverse the growing number of overweight or obese children in Australia," he said.

Acknowledging that children’s sport is often an additional financial load on families in the current climate, USM Events offers half price entry into the Superkidz event for kids aged between 7 – 13 years who live on the Sunshine Coast.

Visit www.usmevents.com.au

Regional Spotlight
Rathdowney Heritage Festival - By Carla Adams

His voice crackles down the line. After a hard day out building and repairing split-rail fences around the Fassifern Valley on the Queensland and New South Wales border, Sandy Armstrong is enjoying his chance to express a few of his strongly felt opinions. He’s just one of the ‘living history’ exhibits at the annual Rathdowney Heritage Festival, supported in 2010 by the Queensland Events Regional Development Program.

I’m supposed to be interviewing him about his role as a blacksmith, a rarely-practised trade he has demonstrated for the past 13 years at the Festival. One of Queensland’s most comprehensive celebrations of our pioneer past, the 2010 festival, which marks the centenary of Rathdowney’s township, will feature heritage demonstrations, traditional music, food and entertainment.

And, of course, blacksmithing, which involves Sandy’s special passion – authentic wrought iron. As opposed to “steel twisted-up all fancy, that people pass off as wrought iron these days – it just doesn’t last,” he says.

“Back when I started fencing I would build a fence to last 50 years, but these days I build ‘em to last 10 years – that’s all people want because they will probably move on or change their fence boundaries in that time anyway,” Sandy says.

“I’ve had lots and lots of people ask me to take them on as a blacksmithing apprentice, but after two or three weeks they cool off after they see how much they have to learn and how long it will take. Young people want everything now,” he says.

These days, Sandy’s vast knowledge is on public display at two or three annual events such as the Rathdowney Heritage Festival, where he gives live demonstrations of blacksmithing to an appreciative audience.

“The young ones are usually the most inquisitive about what I’m doing,” says Sandy.

“The adults usually rush off and bring me back their crowbars and the like so I can straighten them out. I’m good at that,” he adds.

They don’t come much straighter than Sandy.

The 2010 Rathdowney Heritage Festival is supported by the Queensland Events Regional Development Program. For a full calendar of supported events, visit www.queenslandevents.com.au

RATHDOWNEY HERITAGE FESTIVAL
April 2010
Web: www.rathdowney.org.au

Gold Coast Update
Time to Train

There has been a huge demand for the 2010 Gold Coast Airport Marathon interactive training diaries since they went online in January.

There are easy-to-follow training diaries for the Marathon, Half Marathon and 10km Run for Advanced, Intermediate and Beginner levels.
Already more than 9,000 people have downloaded a diary to assist their preparation for the big event in July.

Click here www.goldcoastmarathon.com.au to download a Training Diary.

Asia Pacific Screen Awards
APSA Dates Announced

APSA is an international cultural initiative of the Queensland Government, Australia, in collaboration with CNN International, UNESCO and FIAPF-International Federation of Film Producers Associations. APSA celebrates the cinematic excellence and cultural origins of 70 countries and areas – a vast region responsible for half the world’s film output.

APSA Chairman, Des Power said: “The Asia-Pacific region produces half of the films in the world and is home to some of the most exciting, innovative and talented practitioners in the industry. In a year when Asia-Pacific works are absent from all major categories in the recent Academy Award nominations, we are reminded how vital it is for filmmakers of Asia-Pacific to have an award of their own, to acclaim the outstanding talent of the region and create new audiences for their work.”

Once again, the APSA Ceremony will be staged at the state-of-the-art Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre. Nominees and international film industry guests will be accommodated at the Surfers Paradise Marriott Resort & Spa where a series of activities will take place in the lead up to the Awards. Members of the 2010 International Jury will meet on the Gold Coast in November to determine the winners in Asia-Pacific’s highest accolade in film ahead of the APSA Ceremony on December 2.

The fourth annual APSAs will closely follow the 19th St George Bank Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF) which will take place on November 4–14, bringing two of Queensland’s flagship film industry events together. The two events will continue to operate independently but being closer on the events calendar will provide an opportunity to forge a greater association.

www.asiapacificscreenawards.com

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