2025 Speakers

Keynote speaker: Christopher Breedlove Director of Civic Activation, Burning Man Project Topic: The Future of Festivals Note: keynote will be delivered exclusive to AFIC via livestream What you'll learn: Delegates will come away with an understanding of the model of...

Stephen Wray Director of Contemporary Music and Director of Arts Investment and Philanthropy, Office of the Arts Topic: Australian Government support for festivals What you'll learn: Delegates will come away with an understanding of what the Australian Government is...

Christen Cornell Research Fellow and Manager, Research Partnerships - Creative Australia Topic: Creative Australia’s latest industry research Professional bio Christen Cornell is Research Fellow and Manager, Research Partnerships at Creative Australia. In this...

The Hon. John Graham MLC NSW Minister for Music and the Night-time Economy, Minister for the Arts NSW Government update Professional bio The Hon. John Graham MLC was elected in 2016 to serve the people of NSW. He is the NSW Minister for Music and the Night-time...

Victoria Scott Culture, Entertainment and Destination Events Director, Tourism and Events Queensland Topic: Funding and co-op marketing opportunities with Tourism & Events Queensland What you'll learn: Delegates will come away with an understanding of Tourism...

Lauren Penny Chairperson, the Major Events Business Group - Queensland (MEBG-Q) Topic: Beyond the finish line: building a future-ready events industry for Brisbane 2032 and beyond What you'll learn: Delegates will come away with an understanding of The Major Events...

Peter Noble Festival Director - Bluesfest Byron Bay Special Q&A session: Peter joins John Rostron (CEO, Independent Festivals Association, UK) to discuss the state of the festival industry Professional bio Peter Noble OAM is the driving force behind Bluesfest...

Sam Pearce Chief Operating Officer – Pacific Airshow Co-Founder – Crafted Beer Festival Panellist: special 'Ask the Experts' session What you'll learn: Got a challenge or problem? This is your chance to ask our panellists anything you wish! Our panellists bring a...

Katie James Experienced events professional Panel: 'Ticketing - current best-practice, challenges & opportunities' What you'll learn: This panel will cover the general topic of ticketing. Specifically, this panel will outline: current challenges the industry is...

Aimee Davies Director and Founder - Hey Mate Topic: Managing your mental health & wellbeing What you'll learn: Delegates will come away with an understanding of the benefits of actively managing both your and your staff's mental health in the workplace....

Travis Anderson Sector Manager, Events Asia Pacific Region - Aggreko Event Services Panel discussion: 'Sustainable energy - super-charging your festival’ What you'll learn: This panel will cover the general topic of energy sustainability. Specifically, this panel will...

Lars Brandle AFIC 2025 MC & Head of Content - Vinyl Group Lars Brandle is one of Australia’s leading music industry writers, an agenda-setting and award-winning journalist who is a regular speaker at conferences at home and abroad, on television, radio, and as a...