All artists have the right to participate in Victoria’s vibrant creative sector and to build fulfilling, sustainable careers, and living with disability shouldn’t be a barrier to pursuing a creative career.
Creative Victoria administers a range of competitive grant programs that support creative people, organisations and businesses to bring their creative ideas to life and to reach audiences and markets locally, nationally and internationally.
Each grant program includes a dedicated Deaf and Disabled stream to boost the participation of Deaf and Disabled artists, address systemic barriers, and embed accessibility as a core principle in the creative sector.
In addition to demonstrating the VPS values of respect and human rights, this approach aligns with the Victorian Government's Creative State 2028 strategy to ensure equal opportunities, unique artistic contributions, and a more inclusive creative economy for all Victorians.
Deaf and Disabled artists face systemic barriers to participating in the creative sector. This includes higher costs associated with staging and producing work including the cost of engaging interpreters, undertaking captioning and other access that enable these creatives to work and connect with audiences.
Creative Victoria’s targeted funding streams for Deaf and Disabled artists provide extra support for access costs and create pathways for Deaf and Disabled artists to develop their skills, projects, and audiences, recognising the excellence and diverse perspectives they bring.
Deaf and Disabled creatives should be able to fully participate in and lead creative careers – and their voices, their talent and their artistic expression should be seen, heard and experienced. This funding isn’t just about inclusion – it’s about recognising the inherent value and unique artistic vision of Deaf and Disabled artists, fostering a richer and more representative creative state.
In 2025 Victoria provided more than $300,000 in dedicated funding to Deaf and Disabled artists and creators by investing in 21 projects by musicians, visual artists, filmmakers, theatre producers and more.
Recipients included Weave Movement Theatre, a dance and theatre company made up of disabled performers, who received a Creative Projects Fund grant to present a new production, Flesh Mirror, which blended pre-recorded video, dance and text-based theatre.
In collaboration with artists including Rebecca Jensen, Weave Movement Theatre presented Flesh Mirror at the 2025 Melbourne Fringe Festival. The funding was critical to the success of the show’s one-week season and unlocked a new level of professionalism for the company.
Accessibility was embedded throughout the process, including captioning, a tactile tour, audio description and screens displaying lines. The shows received strong critical acclaim and positive feedback from audiences and industry peers. Weave members learned new skills, and the production expanded the company’s networks taking their work to a new level.
Providing dedicated funding for deaf and disabled creatives demonstrates the public sector values of respect and dedication to human rights.