The CRD Arts Champion Summit

As the BC Culture Days Ambassador, I will be spending the summer attending local arts and culture events and to spread the word about Culture Days within the community. Since I was already going to attend most of these local events, and already talk a bit too much about the arts, it's sort of the perfect fit! Most recently I attended the CRD's (Capital Regional District) Arts Champion Summit, which focused on the importance of inclusivity and collaboration in the arts.

Here is transcript of the brief talk that I gave on June the 6th. And yes, I write the way I speak... I guess that's the screenwriter part of me. 

Hello -- As the announcer just said, my name is Ashley Good, and I am a local filmmaker, as well as this year’s BC Culture Days Ambassador for Victoria.
BC Culture Days is our province’s chapter of the cross-country Culture Days movement, which aims to make the arts more inclusive and accessible by inspiring more members of our communities to get creative.

This year’s theme is OnBeat, inspired by the collaborative nature of drum circles. Because at the heart of it, drumming is universal, accessible, inclusive, and powerful, just as we want the arts to be. In celebration of OnBeat, artists and organizations are invited to participate by organizing a drumming or rhythm-inspired event during BC Culture Days. Or really, any sort of artistic event that get hands clapping or hearts pounding!

While BC Culture Days officially run from September 28th to the 30th, our goal is to raise awareness of and celebrate British Columbian artists and the arts all year round. Our Culture Days events don’t take place in just one location – they will happen all around the city in a variety of locations.

I’ve just got to say that, as an indie filmmaker, artistic collaboration is essential to my field. Whether it’s a 5-minute short that someone self funded or a huge blockbuster, there is a team behind every project… Writers, directors, cinematographers… Filmmaking might be one of the more obvious examples of artistic collaboration, but really, all mediums are collaborative. You can’t paint without inspiration. I guess what I am saying is, the more people that get involved in the arts, the better it will be for all of us and our communities! 

If you would like to learn more about Culture Days and how you can connect with other artists around Victoria, then I would like to invite you to attend our upcoming community planning session on Monday, June the 18th at 2:30pm at the Central Branch of the Greater Victoria Public Library. This, and all information about Culture Days is available at culturedays.ca.

Thank you!