MEDIA RELEASE

Join the pARTy – Free Western Sydney Youth Fest

Released 20 November 2007

Information and Cultural Exchange
PO Box 4033 Parramatta NSW 2124 Australia
T: +61(2) 9897 5744 / F: +61(2) 9897 5766

Juice up your election day with cutting-edge film, art and music at The pARTy ’07, a free youth arts festival in Merrylands.

Live performances by ARIA-nominated hip-hop act Foreign Heights and Australian Idol finalist Joseph Gatehau will accompany film, visual art and music from ICE’s Youth Digital Cultures workshops. These workshops train and support digital artists in Western Sydney and help emerging talents get a break in the industry.

‘I’m from Liverpool myself and I know how hard it is to get a break,’ said Joseph Gatehau, whose unique RnB music took him to the Australian Idol finals in 2006. ‘But there is so much talent in the area, it’s just waiting to be busted open.’

MC Trey, from Foreign Heights, agrees ‘I’ve been working with ICE to train up hip-hop artists in Western Sydney and I’m constantly blown away by the passion of the young people I work with. There are such strong voices here, people really have something to say and they’re learning how to put it all together into powerful music.’

The pARTy offers a chance to learn new skills, with workshops in Parkour, the French art of urban body movement, video production and lyric writing, zine making, a live art mural, open mike, breakdancing, basketball and pool competitions, as well as food and market stalls.

Information and Cultural Exchange (ICE), the Granville-based community arts and technology organisation, has run digital media workshops in six Local Government Areas around Western Sydney throughout the year. The workshops trained young people in filmmaking, hip-hop production, graphic design and photography.

‘These workshops were incredibly successful because they’re relevant,’ said Lena Nahlous, Director of ICE. ‘As youth culture moves toward a more digital focus, young people are more interested in learning the creative and technical skills required to make art that really speaks to them. And the results are very exciting – The pARTy will showcase the cutting-edge of new talent.’

Many of the participants took on tough subjects, such as educating young women about eating disorders. All the digital art created will be on show at The pARTy.

When: noon-5pm, 24 November 2007 (Election Day)
Where: Holroyd Youth Services, 289 Merrylands Rd, Merrylands