A shared dream
SASSIO Arts & Entertainment has been subcontracted by The Festivals Company Fiji to build on a shared dream of elevating the local arts industry.
Owner of Sassio Bex Peterson, popularly known by stage name ‘Sassy’, has been announced to be working alongside Festivals Company owner Sharleen Ali on multiple major upcoming events.
Peterson said of the collaboration “I have a background in events as well; I’m a selfmanaged artist.
“And I think that’s what I can bring to this team, it’s probably my extensive network of media connections and also marketing and sponsorship knowledge and experience, which is something that makes it so that we really work well together, we balance each other out.”
Ms Ali and Peterson agreed that for business-minded women with a passion for the arts, the challenge was finding ways to grow the industry and tap into funding that had thus far not been attainable to the arts.
Much of their work centres on accessing funding to promote local artists and proving to funding bodies that “hey, this is also community based funding, it just looks different from what you’re used to. It’s not a sports or a church project but this is really helping individuals and families and it’s so important to. Artists need that support and the arts are so integral to everything else and so highly impactful to society.”
“We have very similar goals; we want to create a better platform for artists, we want to standardise some things in the industry in terms of payment and professional practice. We want to use our skills to help others as well, and to just raise the standard of events in general, of professionalism in the industry and to educate and build capability across the arts,” Peterson added.
The Festivals Company has organised a festive dinner and show event at the Kanu Gastropub in December which features a performance by Sassy.
The companies are also in the process of bringing Fringe Festivals to Fiji in early 2023.