00:00Celebrations of light, speed and sound, central to the Territory's pitch for more interstate
00:09and international arrivals.
00:12The Government exploring a merger between the publicly owned Major Events Corporation
00:16and the Ministry of Tourism.
00:18We want to make sure that we are the most competitive that we can be with the resources
00:22that we have and we'll keep looking at all of those options starting from now, right
00:28through until we think we can get it right.
00:30While there'll be no changes to this year's events calendar, the Government believes merging
00:35the two bodies would more efficiently drive tourist visitation.
00:39Major Events derives most of its $40 million budget from Government grants, but says its
00:44ticketed events last year generated $150 million for the wider Territory economy.
00:51But what of smaller events that cater mainly for local audiences?
00:55Since the 1980s, Darwin Fringe Festival has provided a platform for emerging Territory
01:00artists and relies on Major Events' sponsorship to develop young local talent.
01:06A lot of the artists we work with, it's probably their first or their second show, but we also
01:11do work with established artists who are keen to come and try something new.
01:15While the Fringe doesn't attract the masses like larger festivals do, organisers say their
01:21interstate audience is growing, as is local talent.
01:25The Northern Territory Major Events funding is massive to us because it lets us improve
01:29not only the quality of what we're offering to audiences, but also the quality of the
01:33experience for artists and what we can produce here in the Territory.
01:36Chasing the tourist dollar on the Territory stages.
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