#WeMakeEventsNZ

Pic: Cathedral Square, Christchurch. Photo by Sebastian Schweiger

On September 30^th from eight till eleven at night, over one hundred performance venues, businesses and residencies across New Zealand were lit up in red to support a global coalition of entertainment industry professionals #WeMakeEvents. The objectives of the campaign were twofold, to raise awareness of the plight of the industry, and to provide an opportunity for members of the entertainment community to reconnect, with many venues hosting gatherings for their employees, contractors and suppliers.

The #RedAlert Hits the Headlines

Vicki Cooksley, President of Entertainment Technology NZ (ETNZ), the organisation that took the lead on instigating the day of action here in Aotearoa, describes the event, “The response was fantastic, not only because of the numbers involved but also for us all to see people we haven’t seen in months, to check in on colleagues.” The livestream of the event was viewed twenty-four thousand times across three platforms, and reached over seventy-seven thousand people across the ETNZ  Facebook page and a dedicated #WeMakeEventsNZ page.

Mainstream media covered the event too with The Project, Radio NZ and Stuff all highlighting the global day of action. Unfortunately, with the election in full swing, leading politicians failed to acknowledge the event, “From previous communications that we have had, the Prime Minister and Minster Robertson do have some inkling of what we are dealing with, that we aren’t like the restaurant sector and able to open our doors as soon as we return to level one or two.”

Lobbying the Government for Sector-Specific Support

The hope is that this well-supported day of action reinforces that message. The stream, comprising interviews with industry professionals describing the devastating impact the pandemic was having on their livelihoods, and live footage from participating locations around the country, will be edited down and used to lobby government, “There are powerful images and statements that we can use to illustrate that although there is support available, it is sitting at the top of supply chain. We need to make sure that it trickles down to all those in the industry, not just those who are involved at the pitching stage, but those of us who only see work once a show reaches the rehearsal stage or event reaches delivery.”

The interviews clearly demonstrate that the exodus of skilled people to other industries has already begun, “We are finding it difficult to get hard data on how many people have lost work or moved out of the sector, so these personal accounts are invaluable. ETNZ, along with other event sector representative bodies, are emphasizing that we are still a viable industry with a future. We just need some sector-specific support to be able to survive until the industry can rebound.”

The #WeMakeEvents global team meet weekly, “There were twenty-eight countries involved in the global day of action, although some admittedly were stimmed by COVID-related restrictions. We are planning future events and hoping to grow the number to fifty countries, including those who have been a lot worse hit than New Zealand.”

COVID19 Guide for NZ Theatre, Events and Entertainment Sector Operation

The weekly global #WeMakeEvent meetings are also a productive forum for sharing industry learnings, “We are all about safety first and we discuss ideas and tools, what works and what doesn’t. We want governments to be confident that they can allow gatherings because the industry has proven procedures in place.” ETNZ has been working hard producing a guide that has already been out for consultation, “We have taken the legislation, what we have learned from overseas and from our members, and produced a readable document. It describes what can be done to keep people safe at every alert level, and encompasses props, hair and makeup, wardrobe, everything. It will be a living document that will be updated as we move through the pandemic.”

To learn more about #WeMakeEventsNZ and to access the COVID19 guide visit https://www.etnz.org/