THE 2012 VISIONARY MOMENT

THE CRISIS & OPPORTUNITY LOCATED IN IMPLEMENTING THE GAINS WON FOR THE CREATIVE

SECTOR IN BUDGET 2011/12

CONTEXTFOR THE T&T ARTS COMMUNITY & CULTURAL INDUSTRY THIS WAS THE

MOST IMPORTANT BUDGET THAT WAS EVER AUTHORED. AND THIS YEAR COULD BE THE ONE THAT DECIDES OUR FATE FOR THE NEXT 20.

WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THIS HISTORICAL MOMENT SO THAT WE DO NOT MAKE FATAL ERRORS- ANY ERROR AT THIS MOMENT IS

FATAL!!!

IF WE DO NOT GET THE IMPLEMENTATION OF WHAT WAS WON RIGHT IN THIS BUDGET- IT MAY BE ALL OVER FOR US…

•THE COMPLETE PASSING OF THE GOLDEN AGE GENERATION•18,000 DEAD IN 10 YEARS- 1000+ LEFT, 2012 IS THE LAST MOMENT•WE HAVE NOT DOCUMENTED STORIES NOR PASSED ON INDIGENOUS SPECIALISED SKILLS, A CRITICAL ENTERPRISE AWAITS•WE FAIL & WE LOSE COMPLETELY OUR UNIQUENESS & COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE•THIS NOT JUST A MORAL RESPONSILBILITY BUT A BILLION DOLLAR OPPORTUNITY

COMPLETE COLLAPSE IN EVERY SINGLE SECTOR- DESPITE A $300 BILLION BOOM

•THEATRE, DANCE, MUSIC, VISUAL ARTS, CRAFT, LITERATURE, TV & FILM, FESTIVALS…•SKILL, AUDIENCE, INTERNATIONAL BRAND CACHE, AESTHETICS, MARKET CONNECTIONS…•COMPLETE DIVORCE OF POPULATION FROM THE ARTS EXCEPT IN ITS BASEST FORMS…•WE ARE MOVING INTO A PHASE EXEMPLIFIED BY WEST INDIES CRICKET WHERE ONCE WE WERE WORLD LEADERS BUT NOW ARE FIRMLY ENTRENCHED AS SECOND TO LAST- BECAUSE OF A FAILURE TO HONOUR, INSTITUTIONALISE, TRANSMIT AND INNOVATE ON LEGACY

CONVERSELY- ON THE REST OF THE PLANET- THE ARTS HAVE EXPLODED IN THE LAST DECADE & ARE THE

ENGINE OF GROWTH FOR LARGE & SMALL ECONOMIES•MOST COUNTRIES HAVE CREATED THE ENABLING ENVIRONMENTS AND INSTRUMENTS TO UNLEASH THEIR CREATIVE SECTORS •THEY ALL HAVE REAPED NATIONAL BENEFITS WHICH HAVE TOOLED THEM ECONOMICALLY TO DEAL WITH THE GLOBAL DOWNTURN•WE WERE COMPLETELY LEFT OUT AND HAVE TO CATCH UP

WE HAVE DONE NEXT TO NOTHING IN 48 YEARS•WE MUST BE HONEST WITH OURSELVES, WE ARE STARTING ALMOST FROM SCRATCH-•WE HAVE TO MOVE FROM INTUITIVE GIFTS TO MASTERY TO GLOBAL INDUSTRY•WE NOW HAVE TO CONSTRUCT A PROPER ECO-SYSTEM OF INFRASTRUCTURE, LEGISLATION, POLICY, AND FUNDING INSTRUMENTS TO FACILITATE TALENT•SIMULTANEOUSLY WE HAVE TO ENGAGE THE LOCAL TALENTS THAT ARE READY TO GRADUATE AND WIN NEW LANDS FOR US- •WE MUST IDENTIFY AND EMPOWER THESE TO BE THE GLOBAL GATE-OPENERS

WE ARE ONE OF THE 10 CULTURAL NODES ON PLANET EARTH

•NY, LA, LONDON, NEW ORLEANS, PARIS, ROME, INDIA, JAPAN, JAMAICA…•OUR POWER AND INFLUENCE WAS CREATED IN OUR GOLDEN AGE 1930-1950•WE EXIST IN A PERIOD OF THE WANING OF THE INFLUENCE OF OUR GOLDEN AGE•OUR CHALLENGE IS: HOW DO WE CONTINUE THE GIFTS OF A GOLDEN AGE WHEN THE CONDITIONS ON THE GROUND NO LONGER EXIST?•OTHER COUNTRIES HAVE ANSWERED THOSE QUESTIONS FOR THEIR TRADITIONS-•WE MUST: TREASURE, HONOUR, & BUILD ON THESE GIFTS; UNLEASH THE MASTERS; AND APPRENTICE , EMPOWER AND UNLEASH THE FIFTH GENERATION

WE KNOW WHAT WE CAN DO WHEN UNLEASHED!

WE HAVE A PHENOMENAL LEGACY TO BUILD ON

•WE HAVE WON OSCARS, EMMYS, GRAMMYS, TONYS, NAACP AWARDS, BET AWARDS, NOBEL PRIZES, COMMONWEALTH BOOK AWARDS, BOLLYWOOD OSCARS-•300 TRINI-STYLED CARNIVALS GLOBALLY WORTH $15B, CREATED THE ONLY ACOUSTIC INSTRUMENT IN THE 20TH CENTURY, WORLD’S 1ST PLATINUM ALBUM, 2ND OLDEST RECORDING INDUSTRY IN THE WORLD, A CULTURAL MOTHERLODE UNPARALLELLED IN HUMAN HISTORY… •WE MUST GIFT SKILLED, WILLING AND WORTHY PRACTITIONERS WITH THE LEGACY OF THE MASTERS AND FACILITATE THEIR WINNING OF NEW LANDS FOR US

INCUBATIONFACILITATING THE LIFE CYCLE OF

THE CULTURAL PRODUCT

TRANSFORMING A $1.9 BILLION SECTOR INTO A $6 BILLION EARNER OF FOREIGN

EXCHANGE IN 3-4 YEARSSUB-SECTOR POSSIBLE ANNUAL CONTRIBUTION TO GDP

IN 3-4 YEARSINSTITUTIONS THAT MUST BE IMMEDIATELY SET UP AND/OR RESOURCED

HERITAGE DESTINATIONS (DESTINATIONS, MERCHANDISE, BRAND & AMBIENT ECONOMIES)

$1B 1. Project Memory,

2. The Guild of Masters

3. The Heritage Warehouse CARNIVAL & FESTIVALS (DESTINATIONS, MERCHANDISE, & BRAND & AMBIENT ECONOMIES)

$2.5B 1. Pan Factory

2. Carnival/Mas Camp Factory

FACILITATION OF GENIUS TALENTS & FRONTLINE PRODUCTS (OVERSEAS TOURING CONTINGENTS)

$2B 1. Arts Council

2. Trinidad & Tobago Entertainment Company- and

3. T&T Film Company, funding needs to be ramped up

OTHER PARTS OF THE SECTOR SERVICES- CONSULTANTS, EVENTS, SOLUTIONS, GRAPHICS, PATENTS & COPYRIGHT REVENUE, IT, PRODUCTS- HOUSEHOLD & BUILDING ACCESSORIES; CLOTHES, CRAFT & INDUSTRIAL DESIGN, EDUCATION- MEDIA- TV, FILM, VIDEO, ANIMATION, ADVERTISING, ETC

$1B 1. Fashion Industry Incubator facilitation

2. Creative Economy Industrial Hub with Satellites in Growth Clusters

TOTAL $6.5B

WHY I FEEL WE CAN & MUST DO IT NOW

THERE WILL NEVER BE A CONJUNCTION OF EVENTS LIKE THERE ARE AT THIS PRESENT MOMENT