Idealog + The Phoenix Summit
Wellbeing Month
Creativity > Fear: How New Zealand's mental health problem is affecting the creative industries
When the Government Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction report was released in December last year, it painted a grim picture. “New Zealand is experiencing a rising tide of mental distress and addiction,” it said. “The cost of poor mental wellbeing and addiction is high. It is a high cost to individuals, families and whānau, businesses and organisations, communities, government and the country as a whole.” While the spotlight has been shone on specific demographics, one sector that is also toiling under pressure is our creative industries. We all know the squeeze of creative work well: late nights, long hours, client demands, unrealistic deadlines, impostor syndrome, self-criticism. This, coupled with the sensitive disposition creative people tend to have, often creates an environment where mental health issues can flourish. In part one of a series, Elly Strang looks at the scale of the mental health problem in New Zealand's creative industries.
Creative pursuits
New report by Creative New Zealand and NZ On Air shows making a living in the creative industries is tough
To better understand career sustainability in the arts and creative industries, Creative New Zealand and NZ On Air asked research agency Colmar Brunton to survey a range of creative professionals at the end of 2018. The results were released this week and show the challenges creatives are facing at commercialising their passions. Here, we break down the key learnings of the report.
Podcast
Listen: Design Work's Kate Darby interviews Intern Magazine's Alec Dudson
Design Work is a new podcast hosted by New Zealand designer Kate Darby that interviews trailblazing creatives from all over the globe about how they design and how they embrace new modes of working. In the eighth episode, she chats with Alec Dudson, founder of Intern Magazine and lecturer at Leeds Arts University. Dudson started Intern as an independent publication in 2013 to create an open, frank discussion about the state of the creative industry and young people's place in it. Here, they discuss starting an independent publication, evolving it into a digital media house, call out culture pressuring brands and employers to hopefully to the right thing and why we need more young diverse voices in the creative industry.
