Timor Leste

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  Ange Leech & Giovanni Lorusso (VWA)

  Arte Moris

  Supported by The Department of Culture and the Arts, WA

Visual artist Ange Leech's work stems from a dedicated study of human forms and expressions in creating performative objects such as puppets and masks. Giovanni Lorusso is a cinematographer and filmmaker who utilises his background in theoretic art, philosophy and photography to explore and experiment with different areas of visual representation. His work has been screened around Europe, South America, Australia and Asia. At Arte Moris in Dili, Ange and Giovanni will collaborate with the arts centre on a series of stop-motion film workshops. This will result in a new work to be presented at Arte Moris Festival 2015.

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  Lina Andonovska (VIC)

  Many Hands International

  Supported by Creative Victoria

Born in Macedonia and arriving in Australia as a refugee from the Yugoslav crisis in 1990, Lina Andonovska is now considered one of Australia's most exciting flautists, leading a diverse career as soloist, recitalist, chamber musician and orchestral player. Lina has been awarded the prestigious Freedman Fellowship, played with Australia's major orchestras including the Australian Chamber Orchestra, has worked with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and held a Fellowship with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, performing and recording under the baton of Vladimir Ashkenazy. At not-for-profit organisation Many Hands International Lina will collaborate with local composer Simeo Baretto. The resulting work will be the first classical music composition to include Timorese instruments in the Western classical style.

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  Alex Ben-Mayor (NT)

  Creative Activities Unit, Office of the President

  Supported by Arts NT and The Australia Council for the Arts

Alex Ben Mayor is a producer, playwright, director and dramaturge focused on international performance exchange. As a Creative Producer based in the Northern Territory he helped to establish Brown’s Mart Arts and recently worked as Producer with the Darwin Festival. Over the past two years he has been involved in developing the first cross-cultural contemporary theatre project in Timor-Leste. During his residency with the Creative Activities Unit of the Office of the President of Timor-Leste, Alex will develop the framework for an international arts festival to promote cultural development by supporting the cultivation and showcasing of local and international work.

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  James Laidler (VIC)

  Arte Moris

  Supported by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation & The Australia Council for the Arts

James Laidler is an award winning emerging writer, poet and spoken word performer. His first novel, The Taste of Apple won the 2010 IP Picks Award for Best First Book and was published by Interactive Publications. In 2009 the Australian Poetry Centre selected Laidler’s After the Fall for their Poetic Monologue Series, which was later adapted for the stage and performed at the Melbourne Writers’ Festival in 2010. In Timor- Leste James will develop his artistic practice and skills as a writer by immersing himself in Timorese culture, giving him the insight to write about Timorese issues with conviction.

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  Louise Partos (NT)

  Afalyca Arts

  Supported by The Australia Council for the Arts

Louise Partos is the Executive Officer of Artback NT: Arts Development and Touring, Darwin. Louise has an extensive background in the not for profit arts and culture sector including project management and cross cultural development. She has worked for many years within communities, particularly Australian Aboriginal. Through her residency, Louise wishes to create a series of strong partnerships and robust working networks in the arts between Australia and Timor Leste; test and strengthen her framework for ethical community engagement, capacity building and decision making; and work with the arts community of Baucau in order to produce a community festival.

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  Catherine Simmonds (VIC)

  Many Hands International

  Supported by the Australia Council for the Arts

As an artistic director Catherine’s focus is the space between the lived experiences of communities and the language of art. She was a lead actress with the IRAA theatre for 10 years where themes of displacement, identity and cultural minorities were prominent in her performances. During her residency at Many Hands in Timor Leste, Catherine will take on the simultaneously challenging and rewarding task of implementing a theatrical process within a community that has never been involved in the art of theatre-making.

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  Gillian Howell (VIC)

  Bibi Bulak

  Supported by Arts Victoria & The Australia Council for the Arts

Gillian Howell is a Melbourne-based performer, composer, and music animateur. Her arts practice focuses on collaborative and group-devised composition, working across arts disciplines, and in diverse environments ranging from schools and arts centres to post-conflict zones and prisons. She directs creative projects for the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, ArtPlay, Australian Chamber Orchestra and Australian Youth Orchestra, and is a member of teaching staff at The University of Melbourne and the Australian National Academy of Music. During her residency she hopes to collaborate with performers, lead artists and community workshop programs, and devise collaborative music-making approaches that draw upon Timor- Lesteese music traditions.

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  Simone O'Brien (VIC)

  Bibi Bulak

  Supported by the Australia Council for the Arts

Simone O'Brien has performed as an acrobat, clown, aerialist, actor, stuntwoman and performance artist for such companies as Circus Oz, Club Swing, Stalker Stilt Theatre, Legs On The Wall, and ABC Kids TV. O'Brien conducted her residency in Timor- Leste with the performing arts company Bibi Bulak, Dili, where she taught drama, dance, physical theatre and circus skills workshops to young people. Working closely with the local community O'Brien created a free site-specific physical theatre performance, Ikan Bo'ot at the Arte Moris Free Art School precinct in Dili. The show was an outstanding success with the local community and has since been invited to perform at the 2006 Brave Festival in Poland.