With grit and grace, one Filipino proves there is no better time to be in the booming Australian Creative Industry than now.
A recent study by Academics Dr. Marion McCutcheon and Professor Stuart Cunningham of the University of The Creative Economy In Australia: What Census 2021 Tells Us, shows that there has never been a better time to be a worker in Australia’s creative industries. The data reveals that the creative economy is growing “at a rate of more than 50 per cent higher than the rest of the workforce.”
Althier Alianza, a multidisciplinary creative and photographer, born and raised in the Philippines, represents most of our stories as Filipino creative dreamers who were expected to be either an accountant, a lawyer, or a doctor.
"I floundered like a lost soul in a sea of numbers", she recounted when asked how she began with her creative journey.
Althier graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Management Accounting from University of Santos Tomas. As a student, she was tossing and turning in a program that she was not interested in. Her heart and interest have always been in the arts. She grew up trying different art forms, such as illustrating, painting, photography, film, and music. With the determination to forge her path as an artist and creative, she pursued a career in arts and design after graduating in 2014. Since then, she has been working as an art director and graphic designer, with experience working with advertising agencies, startups, and non-profit organisations.
She courageously changed the path expected of her and surrendered to the journey. She thrived in her artistic work and her practice revolved around advertising, graphic design, photography, and contemporary art, taking inspiration from pop culture, music, life in the Philippines, her experiences, and her queer stories.
In August 2022, she migrated to Australia and challenged herself to enter the Australian Creative and Advertising Industry. Her creative vision and worldview became her gear in entering the Australian Creative Industry and discovering what makes it unique from the Philippines.
Shortly after a few months, she got accepted into the prestigious AWARD School. The program consists of 12 weeks of part-time study with weekly lectures and Thursday night tutorials hosted by key advertising and creative agencies. Lecturers are renowned creative industry leaders with expertise across advertising, digital, film, radio, print, social media and new business disciplines. A creative brief will be issued each week for students to work on with the assistance of tutors and mentors drawn from the cream of the creative industry.
Top students are recognised and awarded to each State as judged by the industry leaders. Last 9th August 2023, just turning a year of residing in Adelaide, knowing the Australian culture and how they behave and take information, AWARD School released the final results for SA and Althier won second place.
"Achieving second place in SA was extra rewarding because I was juggling a lot of things while doing AWARD School. Working as a freelance art director with Showpony (who have been really supportive), helping put up a group exhibition for SALA Festival and doing other projects on the side. I knew from the beginning that it’s gonna be tough for me considering the time, but I made it. And I am proud that I put out a folio that 100% reflects me," Althier said.
Whilst trying to passionately hustle as freelance art director, Althier is also helping established SA’s newest support group for Filipino creatives, Ugnayang Sining at Pamana (USAP Collective) as co-founder.
“Knowing that design and the arts can be used as a tool for communication, she hopes to create more meaningful work and to tell more stories”, she added.
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