Infinite Word Festival postponed to next year
Staff Writer | Tuesday November 17, 2015 11:09
One of the organisers of the event, Kenneth “Cutrite” Moeng, said they approached a number of companies to sponsor in part or in full but most, if not all, did not have any funding to support the initiative.
The festivals were billed for Gaborone, Francistown, and Maun. He said the total estimate of the project was P297, 000, with much of the costs going towards payment of performers, technical services, marketing, and advertising.
“A good P100, 000 was invested into the same festival in 2011, but made losses of the same investment given that, there was as is today, no company with resources to partner,” Moeng explained.
He also explained that the intention of the festival was to move away from the common focus of other festivals or groups that concentrate in the cities, with few performers; to address the issue of how young people may use art to earn a living.
The outcome of the festival would have enabled both young and old people to compete in an award-based competition in performance arts such as poetry, comedy and storytelling.
Moeng said in 2016, the strategy of the Infinite Word Festival would work with a lean budget that could be self-sustaining while still seeking financial support.