Compass Festival 2014 Through the Eyes of a Young Producer

Compass Festival 2014 Through the Eyes of a Young Producer, Anna Turzynski …

For the past five months four young creatives and I have been helping to deliver Compass Festival 2014.

We have been dubbed the Young Producers as part of a mentoring scheme developed by the festival’s producer, Peter Reed, and artistic director, Annie Lloyd. In short this opportunity is a mutually beneficial arrangement. Annie and Peter have immersed us in the planning, preparation and delivery of Compass Festival 2014 – which brings to unusual venues across Leeds a collection of performances, installations and artworks from ground-breaking live artists – and in return we are helping them roll out a bigger and better festival.

The scheme is made up of three parts. The first is a series of practical tutorials that teach us how to produce a festival; from budgeting to marketing, we have covered it. Secondly, alongside these tutorials we have met with influential practitioners, such as Slung Low, Helen Cole, Quarantine, Forced Entertainment, Arts Council England and Leeds City Council to discuss their work and some of the issues facing the industry today. The final part has seen us flung into the world of producing, head first, as we take responsibility for an artist within the festival. I have been working with Selina Thompson to realise her performance Pat it, Prick it and Mark it with a ‘B’, which is (bias aside) one of my tips for the festival. So far this has involved sourcing a giant silver cake board and visiting a lot of bakeries, all obviously invaluable experience. In addition my fellow Young Producer, Melanie Purdie, and I are responsible for organising the extra events throughout the festival and coordinating the amazing volunteers that Compass recruit.

I feel it is important to mention here that I only graduated from the University of Leeds this year, so within six months of being released from the education system I have been trusted to plan a festival launch party and design a volunteer experience. Compass’ Young Producer Scheme is a rare opportunity. Entry routes to the cultural industries are undefined, to put it politely, meaning that most arts graduates will sell their spleen to gain some experience. Despite the fact that the experience may be with an organisation that is underfunded, over-stretched and perhaps a little ambivalent about their offer to young people. However, the Young Producers Scheme undoubtedly proves that it is possible to train young creatives and develop a company simultaneously. Exemplified by the individual support meetings Annie and Peter offer to us, where they check in to make sure we are happy and balancing our time effectively. It is in everyone’s best interests that we succeed, because ultimately they have trusted us with their festival and we have trusted them with our time.

Although the experience and lessons have been excellent the most rewarding thing to come out of Compass has been the group. At the start of this process none of us had worked together, we all came from different backgrounds with different approaches and we all had different goals. But these differences have been our greatest strength. It is so refreshing to work with people whose minds work in different ways from yours. At times the work is challenging and so is juggling your part-time job in a cafe but I feel very supported by the group. It’s great spending time with people who share your passion and we intend to keep “networking” at the pub, after the festival, very regularly.

I asked for a few recommendations from the Young Producers to give you an inside view of the programme (Disclaimer: Choosing what to name-drop here paralleled choosing which parent you love more). Joely’s pick is Quarantine’s Between us, we know everything… – a mobile video van which will visit communities across Leeds – which celebrates the neighborhood’s that it encounters by inviting the people of Leeds to become part of the festival and part of its own ever-growing story. Mel encourages you to go and see the six projects selected through a national open call, which received almost 180 proposals, and will all take place on Saturday 22nd November at a range of venues from Leeds Corn Exchange to City Square. Each piece has been picked for very particular reasons, and will ‘touch’ you in some way or another. Alice would recommend Live Art Bistro, as it’s a chance to catch a treasured live art platform in the ethereal setting of Holy Trinity Church. You’ll be able to drop-in and move throughout the space, encountering intimate performances from local artists and get really stuck into some interactive pieces that will change throughout the evening. I am personally really excited to try out Invisible Flock’s new App If You Go Away, which invites audiences to get lost within a fictional world which unfolds as they explore the physical geography of Leeds. It places the audience at the centre of the experience and encourages us to rediscover our familiar city that we so often ignore.

Compass Festival takes over Leeds from the 13th – 23rd of November. All but two of the events are FREE to attend.

Plan your visit compassliveart.org.uk

The Compass Young Producers are:

Alice Withers
Jessica Sweet
Joely Fielding
Melanie Purdie
Anna Turzynski