ARTS , CULTURE AND THE POLITICS WE PRETEND NOT TO SEE  By  Thami akaMbongo Manzana Politics affect us as Cultural and Creative Industries practitioners whether we like it or not. We can debate it, resist it, even deny it but we cannot escape it. The sooner we accept this reality, the sooner we begin to engage the system with clarity rather than confusion. We often hear repeated calls from within the sector: we need a Minister who understands the Arts and Culture sector . This is not a new demand. It has been voiced across generations of practitioners, festivals, workshops, and policy engagements. Yet it is important to understand the constitutional framework within which executive appointments are made. Under Section 91(3)(c) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, the President is explicitly authorised to appoint no more than two Ministers from outside the National Assembly. This means the President does, in fact, have limited but real discretion to...

  THE SOUTH AFRICAN CREATIVE INDUSTRY'S BIGGEST CRISIS By Thami aka Mbongo Manzana Truth be told, the Cultural and Creative Industries in South Africa are suffering from a leadership crisis. We have more followers than leaders. We have more social media activists than industry builders. We have more keyboard heroes than policy warriors. Every day artists flood Facebook, X, TikTok and WhatsApp groups with complaints, insults and gossip. Yet when it is time to confront the structural problems that have crippled the sector since 1994, the room suddenly becomes empty. The uncomfortable truth is that the South African Cultural and Creative Industries remain largely unregulated and fragmented.  Despite numerous policy interventions, funding agencies, strategic plans and consultations over the years, artists continue to experience many of the same challenges: unequal access to opportunities, funding disputes, gatekeeping, weak accountability and political patronage.   Since 1994...

AUDITION CALL: JOHANNESBURG-BASED YOUNG TOURING COMPANY 2026/27  A dynamic Young Touring Company based in Johannesburg is seeking versatile young performers to join its 2026/27 repertory touring season. The company stages a diverse repertoire of productions, including the works of William Shakespeare such as Romeo & Juliet, Othello, and Macbeth, alongside contemporary and classical theatre productions performed throughout Southern Africa and internationally. WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR? • Male and female performers under the age of 35 • Actors residing within a 10km radius of Johannesburg CBD (due to early call times and rehearsal schedules) • Passionate theatre practitioners with strong discipline and commitment • Performers who are confident working with Shakespearean text • Strong team players who thrive in an ensemble environment • Artists who can sing, dance/move, and act • Strong musical and vocal abilities are highly desirable and will be considered an advantage dur...

  The Creative Passport Encourages Creatives to Apply for PESP 7 Vacancies at the National Arts Council The Creative Passport encourages artists, cultural workers, researchers, administrators, graduates, and community practitioners across South Africa to apply for the recently announced President’s Employment Stimulus Programme (PESP 7) vacancies by the National Arts Council of South Africa. At a time when unemployment continues to affect many creatives, graduates, and cultural practitioners, these vacancies present an important opportunity for individuals who are passionate about the Cultural and Creative Industries to contribute meaningfully towards the development of the sector. The available vacancies include: 2x Arts Development Officers 1x Junior Arts Development Officer 1x Finance Officer 2x Call Centre and Office Administrators The Creative Passport believes that South Africa is home to an abundance of highly skilled and knowledgeable creatives who often remain overlooked d...

After the Dissolution: What Next for the National Arts Council? By Thami akaMbongo Manzana  The dissolution of the National Arts Council of South Africa Board by Minister Gayton McKenzie has sent shockwaves throughout the Cultural and Creative Industries. For some, it came as a relief. For others, it created anxiety and uncertainty. But perhaps the most important question now is not whether the decision was right or wrong. The question is: what happens next? At this moment, the sector does not need political spin, carefully crafted corporate language, or silence. It needs honesty. Brutal honesty. The creative sector has survived COVID-19, delayed funding cycles, administrative confusion, collapsing institutions, and years of uncertainty. Artists and organisations are not naïve. They understand that governance transitions are complicated. What frustrates the sector most is not necessarily delays — it is the absence of communication and clarity. The Creative Passport would like to of...

  DSAC Sector Clusters Must Account to the Sector They Represent By Thami akaMbongo Manzana On 30 March 2026, the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture together with Gayton McKenzie launched the 17 DSAC Sector Clusters at Nirox Sculpture Park. The launch was accompanied by public declarations, photographs and promises of a new era of sector coordination, consultation and accountability within South Africa’s Cultural and Creative Industries. What also became public knowledge was that each cluster reportedly received R2 million from DSAC. That means approximately R34 million in public funds was allocated to these sector structures in the previous financial year. At a time when many artists, practitioners, organisations and cultural workers continue to face funding challenges, project uncertainty and institutional instability, it is only fair and democratic that the broader sector asks questions. These are not attacks. They are clarity-seeking questions rooted in transparency, account...

THE NATIONAL ARTS COUNCIL AT A CROSSROADS By Thami akaMbongo Manzana  29 May 2026 (Friday) is not just another administrative deadline in the Cultural and Creative Industries calendar. It is a moment of reckoning. A day when the sector will be watching, counting, and quietly asking whether the system meant to support it is functioning or merely surviving. Across South Africa, artists, organisations, producers, and cultural workers are waiting for the long-anticipated funding outcomes from the National Arts Council of South Africa. For many, these decisions are not abstract. They determine whether productions go to stage, whether teams are paid, whether stories are told, and whether the country’s cultural pipeline continues to breathe. Image: NAC Acting CEO,  Vincent Mashale   A sector holding its breath The expectation is simple - on 29 May 2026, the NAC must release its Annual Funding Outcomes. But as of today, 24 May 2026 (Sunday), a worrying silence is emerging in the ...

  Democracy Requires More Than Silence By Thami aka Mbongo Manzana South Africa proudly presents itself as a constitutional democracy founded on human rights, equality, freedom of expression, and public participation. Yet within the Cultural and Creative Industries, many artists, athletes, cultural practitioners, and creatives continue to feel unheard, excluded, and at times punished for speaking truth to power. This contradiction raises a serious question: can there truly be nation-building and social cohesion without honest dialogue? The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), which carries the constitutional responsibility of promoting social cohesion and nation-building, should be at the centre of creating democratic spaces where difficult but necessary conversations can happen openly and without fear. Image: Minister Gayton McKenzie   Freedom of Expression in the Creative Sector The South African Constitution protects Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Expression. The...

OPEN LETTER TO MINISTER GAYTON McKENZIE Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture 20 May 2026 Dear Minister Gayton McKenzie , I write this open letter following the recent Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC) media briefing where several critical questions affecting the Cultural and Creative Industries (CCI) sector were raised by myself on behalf of The Creative Passport Online Media Publication . These questions were not merely for clarity, but reflected the growing concerns, frustrations and anxieties within the sector regarding governance, transparency, labour stability and institutional accountability. The following questions were posed during the briefing: What is the latest update on the National Arts Council (NAC) staff strike, and what resolutions have been reached? Is the Minister concerned about the recent artists’ march at the Playhouse Company in KwaZulu-Natal, and what is being done about the institution’s well-being? Why did DSAC not publicly disclose the amounts alloca...

  Why South Africa Must Reframe Arts and Culture Through the Cultural and Creative Industries Lens by Thami akaMbongo Manzana As South Africa approaches the Local Government Elections on 4 November 2026 , there is an urgent conversation that the Cultural and Creative Industries sector can no longer postpone. Elections at municipal level are not only about service delivery—they are also about how local economies are shaped, who gets funded, which industries are prioritised, and whether culture is treated as decoration or development. For too long, arts and culture has been spoken about as a symbolic or social portfolio. Yet globally, the shift has already happened: culture is no longer just heritage, it is industry, economy, and infrastructure. The question we must ask is simple but uncomfortable: Are we still speaking the language of Arts and Culture , while the world has moved into the language of the Cultural and Creative Industries (CCI) ? Arts and Culture vs Cultural and Creati...