Testing Grounds
Testing Grounds is a paid creative development and personal mentorship program for emerging artists interested in the creation and development of new work over a 12 month period. After the pilot program across the last half of 2022, Testing Grounds continued in 2023 with a new cohort of artists. Across the year, the Testing Grounds participants were a part of monthly group sessions where they learned new skills, gave feedback and support, and put in the time to develop new work. Each mentee was also paired with a specific industry mentor to support where they were with their projects.
Creative development is slow and weird, and progress is not always linear. Testing Grounds gives program participants the space, time and resources to learn, experiment and reflect not only on what they’re making, but also why and how.
The mentees and the projects are:
Nicole Cadelina and Santa Niña, a Filipino-Australia short film, and her first film project as a director. Nicole was mentored by Jules Orcullo.
Santa Niña focuses on the tumultuous mother-daughter relationship between two Filipina women in Western Sydney. Set during a rainy night at a local church, the two women must learn to reconcile and make amends with one another before Sinulog, a religious event celebrating the Feast of Santo Niño.
Across 2023, Nicole completed her short film script, ran a crowdfunding campaign through the Australian Cultural Fund and built up her creative team. The film is currently planned for production mid-2024.
Sarah Leigh Carroll and Chronically Single, a comedic short-form series for TikTok exploring sex, shame and asexual/demisexual representation. Sarah was mentored by Laurrie Mansfield.
Chronically Single’s Maddi is 25 years old and has never been in a relationship let alone had sex; after she gets rejected, she’s determined to become an expert before she embarrasses herself again. Will she learn virginity is a construct? Or will she finally pop her cherry by episode six?
Sarah has been developing her craft as a theatre maker and performer, but was unfamiliar with the screen world. Through Testing Grounds, Sarah refined her concept, developed scripts and a team for the project, and has learned more about how to navigate the screen world.
Kayla Hill and Strike!, a tv series peeking into the chaotic world of youth climate activism. Kayla was mentored by Elias Nohra.
Strike! is a fictional teen dramedy that explores the insides of the youth climate movement. Think, what goes on with Greta Thunberg and the likes between protests? Surely not any relationships or fights or identity crises or breakdowns...right?
Kayla has spent years as a teen climate activist, but was completely unfamiliar with the screen world. She applied for Testing Grounds with an idea and some writing samples, but she had never written a script. Through Testing Grounds, Kayla wrote and revised her first pilot script, had a filmed table read with actors, and transformed her project from an unnamed concept to Strike! She’s currently working on how to independently film the pilot episode.
CREDITS
2023 Artist Participants: Nicole Cadelina, Sarah Carroll, Kayla Hill.
2023 Mentors: Jules Orcullo, Laurrie Mansfield, Elias Nohra.
CuriousWorks Creative Producer: Miranda Aguilar
Testing Grounds was supported by Screen NSW (Screen Industry Development Funding).
Creative development is slow and weird, and progress is not always linear. Testing Grounds gives program participants the space, time and resources to learn, experiment and reflect not only on what they’re making, but also why and how.
The mentees and the projects are:
Nicole Cadelina and Santa Niña, a Filipino-Australia short film, and her first film project as a director. Nicole was mentored by Jules Orcullo.
Santa Niña focuses on the tumultuous mother-daughter relationship between two Filipina women in Western Sydney. Set during a rainy night at a local church, the two women must learn to reconcile and make amends with one another before Sinulog, a religious event celebrating the Feast of Santo Niño.
Across 2023, Nicole completed her short film script, ran a crowdfunding campaign through the Australian Cultural Fund and built up her creative team. The film is currently planned for production mid-2024.
Sarah Leigh Carroll and Chronically Single, a comedic short-form series for TikTok exploring sex, shame and asexual/demisexual representation. Sarah was mentored by Laurrie Mansfield.
Chronically Single’s Maddi is 25 years old and has never been in a relationship let alone had sex; after she gets rejected, she’s determined to become an expert before she embarrasses herself again. Will she learn virginity is a construct? Or will she finally pop her cherry by episode six?
Sarah has been developing her craft as a theatre maker and performer, but was unfamiliar with the screen world. Through Testing Grounds, Sarah refined her concept, developed scripts and a team for the project, and has learned more about how to navigate the screen world.
Kayla Hill and Strike!, a tv series peeking into the chaotic world of youth climate activism. Kayla was mentored by Elias Nohra.
Strike! is a fictional teen dramedy that explores the insides of the youth climate movement. Think, what goes on with Greta Thunberg and the likes between protests? Surely not any relationships or fights or identity crises or breakdowns...right?
Kayla has spent years as a teen climate activist, but was completely unfamiliar with the screen world. She applied for Testing Grounds with an idea and some writing samples, but she had never written a script. Through Testing Grounds, Kayla wrote and revised her first pilot script, had a filmed table read with actors, and transformed her project from an unnamed concept to Strike! She’s currently working on how to independently film the pilot episode.
CREDITS
2023 Artist Participants: Nicole Cadelina, Sarah Carroll, Kayla Hill.
2023 Mentors: Jules Orcullo, Laurrie Mansfield, Elias Nohra.
CuriousWorks Creative Producer: Miranda Aguilar
Testing Grounds was supported by Screen NSW (Screen Industry Development Funding).