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NIDA launches $50,000 Jim Sharman Future Award

Jim Sharman.

NIDA is inviting artists and ‘dreamers’ across the Asia Pacific to submit bold ideas and projects for the chance to receive $50,000.

Administered through the NIDA Future Centre, the Jim Sharman Future Award is a triennial prize that offers funding alongside tailored NIDA support to help turn radical vision into reality.

Sharman, a director and NIDA alum known for his work on productions  Hair (Sydney, Tokyo, Boston), Jesus Christ Superstar (Australia, and 9 years in London’s West End), and The Rocky Horror Show (UK, USA, Australia), has established the award to encourage bold new talent with big ideas, whether it be uncharted performance style, groundbreaking technology, or a bold new artistic movement.

“In 1925, the revolutionary art forms of photography, cinema, surrealism et al, progressed the arts of the 20th century,” Sharman said.

“My aim in establishing the triennial award is to uncover new art forms, ideas, or projects with the potential to inspire, energise and enlighten us in the 21st Century.”

NIDA Future Centre head Beth Shulman said Sharman’s support had been instrumental in establishing the NIDA Future Centre in 2023 as a way to bring industry and education together with new technologies and future thinking.

“We are thrilled to launch the inaugural Jim Sharman Future Award to champion and support radical thinking from the next generation of storytellers,” she said.

The award is open to artists from Australia and the Asia Pacific aged 16-30. Applications can consist of any form of engagement that best suits the idea or project, including written submissions and videos

Finalists will be invited to a live pitch presentation event at NIDA in front of a judging panel on April 29 and 30. Find out more about how to apply here.