Managing the Arts
Kate Park studied for the Postgraduate
Diploma Arts Management at the Royal Welsh College of Music and
Drama, graduating in 2003. She went on to become the Head of
Marketing at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. We spoke to
her about her career so far.
What was your most memorable project at
college?
As part of our final assessment we were required to develop a
business plan for a fictional company, encompassing all of the
various aspects of the course. It included everything from HR and
marketing to finance and risk assessments. It was a particularly
demanding task to cover in such a short period... Or so I thought!
Seven years on, business planning and strategic thinking are part
and parcel of my everyday life – often with considerably tighter
deadlines than the course imposed.
Can you summarize your career to date?
It’s been a real mixed bag. I studied Dramaturgy at Bretton Hall
at undergraduate level then, soon after leaving, I took up the
position of box office manager in a regional theatre (whilst
writing and editing scripts on the side). I found I had a natural
flair for arts administration so I applied for the RWCMD
course.
Whilst on the course I gained as much front of house and
administrative experience as I could to back up all the theory we
were learning. After graduation I went travelling and ended up
living in Sydney for two years. I was the Marketing and Development
Coordinator at Company B: Belvoir Street Theatre, one of
Australia’s pre-eminent producing theatres and was part of the
marketing team for the 2005 Sydney International Festival.
I returned from Sydney in April 2005, and, almost as soon as I
landed, got the job as Edinburgh International Film Festival’s
(EIFF) Marketing Officer, a four month temporary contract. When my
contract ended, the CEO approached me and asked if I would complete
a six month contract with the Filmhouse, EIFF’s sister
organisation, to create a marketing and box office strategy for the
organisation. Half way through that contract, EIFF’s Head of
Marketing moved on. I took up the role and stayed for another four
years.
The role was very broad and encompassed managing audience
development, marketing and communications, box office and customer
care. There were more than a few 80-hour weeks over the five years
– festival roles are not for the fainthearted!
How did your training help prepare you for professional
life?
The RWCMD course opened my eyes to the breadth of knowledge arts
administrators need. You have to be super organised and efficient.
I went into the arts world knowing it would be a hard slog but one
that would pay off. I work with some of the most driven and
creative people on the planet. Not many people can say that!
The RWCMD has an excellent reputation and I think this carries
when you’re applying for work. I’ve been on the other side reading
through applications and if they’ve attended RWCMD, I know they’ll
have been challenged and will have realistic expectations of the
‘real world.’
What are you working on at the moment?
I am now the Digital Marketing Manager for The Audience
Business, the audience development agency for the Edinburgh region.
I am project managing the development of a city wide ticketing
portal in collaboration with 35 arts organisations across the city,
including all of the Edinburgh Festivals and the national
companies. The portal is the first of its kind - a cutting edge
digital platform with functionality including a cognitive events
filter; itinerary builder; personalised content - tailored to your
browsing and purchase behaviours (think Amazon) and of course a
shopping basket where you can purchase from multiple organisations
at the same time – in real time. Dealing with all of the
organisations’ internal logistics and differing technical
capabilities is like untangling a skip of spaghetti – but that’s
half the fun!
What’s next?
I don’t know - you have to be adaptable and go with the flow in
this ever-changing industry.
What advice would you give current
students?
Pester-power and persuasion are your best friends. Persevere and
someone will see your potential and give you a chance. I
guarantee it.