Ray Bourne likes wearing lots of different hats. He likes both actual hats and taking on different roles to keep inspired. Under the name Rainman, he writes raps, dabbles in beats and cuts and has been DJing since he was in high school. He has had music videos on Rage, tracks featured in Bondi Rescue, DJ’ed an outdoor festival in Seoul, Korea and played in outfits as s solo artist through to seven-piece bands from living rooms to the Big Day Out. He has experience in running his own business, organising music events, supervising venues, coordinating programs and selling steak (and other) knives. Seriously. He has run hip hop workshops from Ipswich to Redcliffe and has been a Navigation trainer for deliveries in Brisbane, Townsville, Cairns, Blackall, Longreach and Nambour. In 2010, Ray was a successful JUMP mentoring applicant with The Herd’s Tim Levinson (Urthboy), label manager for Elefant Traks.

Carly Church has worked in the music business as an independent booking agent and band manager.  Since 2006 she has also worn multiple creative ‘hats’ including work within Communications and Public Relations, Children’s Theatre and teaching children’s drama workshops.She will graduate from a Bachelor of Communications (Public Relations) from Griffith in 2012 and looks forward to sharing her knowledge in creative business services through the Navigation program.

Carley Commens is an arts administrator, independent theatre maker, creative producer, and lover of the odd, obtuse, and dark. Carley has worked in the regional arts and youth arts small to medium sector and is currently the Marketing Coordinator at Youth Arts Queensland. She maintains creative projects and short term consultancies and enjoys connecting with and celebrating creative people. An amateur baker and nerd, Carley is a new trainer for Navigation Arts Business Training.

Jess Jones is a contemporary performer/maker, interested in collaborative processes and working across art forms. In Far North Queensland, Jess has performed as part of OnEdge, Cairns (2006 – 09); See Hear Now, Townsville (2006 & 07), with Zane Saunders for ‘Blueprint’ (2009), and with Bonemap for ‘Brink’ and ‘FpFf’, Cairns (2005 & 06). Jess has a Bachelor of Contemporary Art – Dance from Deakin Uni, Melbourne (2004), and she is currently undertaking studies in Community Development.  Jess teaches contemporary dance on the Far North Queensland Atherton Tablelands, and works on Youth & Community Cultural Development projects in the region.

Anna Jones has over ten years’ Australian arts industry experience, having held sponsorship and government relations roles in several state performing arts companies, and education and regional program roles in the small to medium arts sector. Anna has worked with arts governance support service BoardConnect for consulting firm Positive Solutions, and maintains independent project contracting activity. Currently, Anna manages the Australia Council’s JUMP mentoring program nationally for Youth Arts Queensland. Anna holds business and arts bachelor degrees with distinction from Queensland University of Technology, and an Associate Diploma in music practice.

Alexandra McCallum is a writer, theatremaker, performance storyteller and CCD worker. She is also a Program Coordinator at Youth Arts Queensland working on Starburst Regional Mentoring Program and Career Pathways as well as Navigation. She has been a featured performer at storytelling festivals in Perth, Brisbane and Hobart. She has been published in Lowdown Magazine, Brisbane Modern and has had play readings at Metro Arts and the Judith Wright Centre. She is at work on a novel and uses her artistic skills on a number of projects which strengthen and link communities.

Alison Mooney is an artist and curator based in Toowoomba, south-east Queensland. She is also the founding director of the MARS initiative. MARS is an artist run space home to four resident artists and hosts MARS battles, development workshops, networking nights, seasonal exhibitions, collaborative life drawing sessions and offsite artventures. MARS was borne from the success of group, seasonal art exhibitions which began in 2009, showcasing over 100 local artists in those eight shows.  Opening nights continue to engage with a multi-disciplinary showcase of local, unexpected talent across the visual, performance, musical arts and creative ingenuity. MARS works to establish a dialogue between a regional community and its grass roots creatives for the progression of both. In 2012 MARS is expanding into a hybrid arts collective featuring 13 creative groups and individuals – a first for Toowoomba’s independent arts scene.

Tyrone Noyes is an Emcee, Producer,Writer, Artist and  the creator of Fort Lane Studios, Maryborough. Fort lane offers Music Production, Event Organization, Youth Workshops and the Underated Hip Hop Event which is committed to exposing talent in regional areas. He has been writing rhymes since he was 13 and is a keen participant of ciphers, poetry slams, jam sessions and just about any expressive medium.

Robbie O’Brien is a theatre performer, creator, writer and educator. In 2011 Robbie has performed in Room 328 at the World Theatre Festival and The Hamlet Apocalypse at La Boite. In 2010 he performed in the Adelaide Fringe Festival season of The Hamlet Apocalypse, as well as Room 328, A Catch of the Breath and Lunch with Vincent River all Metro Arts. He also Assistant Directed My Name is Rachel Cory and The New Dead: Medea Material, both as part of the La Boite Independents. He is an independent theatre teacher in schools, for adults and in the corporate sphere.

Katherine Quigley is a producer and freelance arts manager. Katherine is the Training Manager at Youth Arts Queensland, overseeing the statewide delivery of the arts business training program, Navigation. She is also the General Manager/Executive Producer of The Danger Ensemble and Vanguard Youth Theatre. Having graduated from QUT with a Bachelor of Creative Industries (Drama) in 2003, she has collected a vast array of industry experience led by her ongoing lust for the new, experimental and the challenging.  Her experience in local multi arts festivals such as Backbone’s  2High Festival (2003), Straight Out Of Brisbane Festival (2003-2004), Artworkers Alliance’ Arc Biennial (2005) and the Australian International Music Market as part of the Queensland Music Festival (2005) led to her gaining an internship with Berliner Festspiele’s Maerz Musik, where she managed the experimental Chinese Opera, Mercury Light World and its subsequent tour.  Kath is passionate about supporting independent and emerging artists and has worked in many youth arts organisations including  Vibewire’s Youth Enterprise hub in Ultimo, Sydney, Youth Arts Qld’s Transit Lounge and many more festivals and projects over the years.

Ili Tulloch is a multi-skilled media professional and director of digital and creative media company Ola Media. She plays in garage punk band Pastel Blaze, co-hosts 4ZZZ radio show Ili vs Innez, and regularly works on media projects with partners in business, community sector and government across Brisbane, Australia and South-East Asia in creative media, training, journalism, and mentoring. Ili runs Ola from 4ZZZ, where she also volunteers. Passionate about independent music, art, culture and media, Ili works really hard and often on a next-to-nothing budget to make things happen. Ili loves project work and has had great success with clients, offering cutting edge web design, social media strategy and marketing, photography, Electronic Direct Marketing, business card and print design and much more.

Jessica Whiting is an independent arts marketer and publicist operating out of Brisbane, Queensland. Jess heard the siren call of the creative industries in her final year of study at the University of Queensland and has, since, dedicated herself to volunteer and paid positions with arts organisations, commercial galleries, festivals and artist-run initiatives. In 2010, Jess researched and wrote for So You Want To Be An Artist & Still Be Able To Eat? and, in 2011, coordinated the marketing and distribution effort for the publication.

Steven Mitchell Wright is the founder and Artistic Director of independent theatre company The Danger Ensemble, for which he has directed and designed Sons of Sin (2high Festival, Brisbane 2011), The Hamlet Apocalypse (La Boite Indie 2011, Adelaide Fringe 2010, La Mama 2009), Children of War (in collaboration with Vanguard Youth Theatre, 2high Festival, Brisbane Powerhouse 2010), Pennies and Beggars in the Street (Brisbane Cabaret Festival/Inhabit Fiesta 2010), Who Killed Amanda Palmer: World Tour (USA, UK, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, France, The Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Spain, Canada and Australia 2008/09), EdgeFest (Boston Pops Orchestra, Boston Symphony Hall, USA 2008), The Establishment (Rothbury Music Festival, USA 2008), In Your Shoes (large scale public promenade work, Brisbane 2007) and The Magic Tent Tour (Edinburgh Fringe Fest 2007).

Steven’s independent work includes the artistic direction and curation of avant-garde performance event Cross Stitch:Without Apology (!Metro Arts, Brisbane 2011), movement direction and chorus direction Kander and Ebb’s Cabaret (American Repertory Theater 2010), direction of immersive dinner theatre experiment Once in Hell (American Repertory Theater 2010), directing In God We Trust (Groundling Award Winner – Best Direction, Queensland Academy for Creative Industries 2010), direction, arts design and cinematography for Blake Says, Janos Vs Wonderland and choreography for Guitar Hero and Leeds United music videos for Amanda Palmer and was one of six writers forSex:Cubed (La Boite Theatre 2006).