THE RESIDENCIES
CURRENT RESIDENCIES
Shark Island Kangaroo Valley offers a selection of residencies throughout the year. The program focuses on documentary film, art, theatre, music and story. The residencies are either through application or invitation.
THEATRE
Story Assembly
Closing Date: 15 December 2025
Residency 1: 27 April–3 May 2026
Residency 2: 14–20 Sept 2026
Residency 3: Early February 2027
Story Assembly is a dynamic ensemble-based program that develops new contemporary theatre work that aligns with Shark Island’s current creative projects. Over the course of three residencies (five weeks in total), nine theatre artists will be given the opportunity to immerse themselves in a rich collaborative environment that will encourage experimentation, embodied exploration and the creation of new contemporary work.
The project is through application, and the artists will be supported through a grant as well as time, accommodation and nourishment at Shark Island Kangaroo Valley. It is a year-long investment of theatre artists in the first ten years of their practice and the project’s intention is to seed the ground for the future sustainability of these artists through bold truth telling.
The program is facilitated and directed by Sam Chester.
Hear from the participants:
Residency 1: 27 April–3 May 2026
Residency 2: 14–20 Sept 2026
Residency 3: Early February 2027
Griffin Studio — New Australian Playwrights through Griffin Theatre
Griffin Studio is an esteemed artist development program — a year-long creative laboratory for early-career playwrights. Each year, Studio artists develop one or more projects in collaboration with Griffin’s Artistic team, while also undertaking workshops on playwriting and theatre making. The program offers time, space, and resources for artists to create work with the potential to shape the cultural landscape. In 2026, for the first time, Shark Island Kangaroo Valley will support this initiative by hosting a week-long residency, offering a focused and immersive environment for creative exploration.
MORE INFO: griffintheatre.com.au
FILM
Shark Island Foundation Feature Docs Pitch
The Shark Island Foundation Feature Docs Pitch gives producers the opportunity to pitch at AIDC 2026 (2–5 March) for the chance to receive a development grant of $25,000 and to participate in a four-day creative residency at Shark Island Kangaroo Valley (12–15 May, 2026) to progress a feature documentary project.
More >
Producers are invited to submit a feature-length documentary project (75 mins+) in development with a plan for theatrical or streaming release. The story can be of any genre but must be character-driven, have a distinctive point of view, with a creative vision and clear artistic style. Ideally, it should have the potential to shift thinking.
The Lab launches in 2026 as a four-day creative residency. Two members from each team will work closely with acclaimed filmmaker and story consultant Joseph Nizeti and the Shark Island team, who will provide tailored guidance to help shape and elevate these stories.
PLEASE NOTE: Applications for the Shark Island Feature Docs Pitch are made through AIDC’s Cut to the Chase program with applications closing on Friday 23 January, 2026 at 23:59 AEDT (or late deadline Friday 30 January, 2026).
PLEASE NOTE: Projects must also apply to Documentary Australia for fiscal sponsorship (round closes 27th January, 2026)
Residency dates: 12–15 May, 2026
Applications close: Friday 23 January, 2026 at 23:59 AEDT (or late deadline Friday 30 January, 2026)
First Nations Impact Lab
The First Nations Impact Lab is a five-day immersive learning experience for documentary and screen-based changemakers using storytelling as a tool for cultural, environmental, and social change. Now in its third year, the Lab builds capacity by uplifting practitioners who may not self-identify as Impact Producers, yet are driving systems change and strengthening community through storytelling, education, cultural leadership or organising.
Across five days, eight participants will gather at Shark Island Kangaroo Valley on Wodi Wodi country for a rare opportunity to connect with leading practitioners from across the globe to learn strategies for activating community-determined solutions, influencing policy, protecting Country, and prioritising the voices and needs of First Peoples.
MORE INFO: garuwa.com
ART
Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship
The Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship, administered by the Art Gallery of New South Wales, will once again extend its support to outstanding artists aged 20 to 30 with an established body of work. The scholarship offers two residency pathways: an international residency at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris, and a two-week residency at Shark Island Kangaroo Valley. The Shark Island Kangaroo Valley residency program, now in its sixth year, will host five artists simultaneously in November 2026. Each artist will receive $10,000 and take part in a two-week immersive residency that includes a program developed in collaboration with the Brett Whiteley Studio.
MORE INFO: artgallery.nsw.gov.au
MUSIC
SongHubs Stories
SongHubs is a flagship collaborative songwriting program by APRA AMCOS that brings together emerging and established songwriters, composers, and producers from around the world. It provides opportunities for creators to connect, share ideas, and work together in a professional studio environment to write new, commercially focused songs. As part of this program, and for the first time in 2026, Shark Island will be offering time and space for an immersive five-day songwriting residency designed for narrative-led songwriters, focusing on the transformative power of storytelling in music. Curated by renowned singer/songwriter Jenny Morris, this residency offers a unique opportunity to delve deep into the art of crafting compelling narratives through song. The goal of the residency is to help harness the power of story, examine the narrative form of a song and elevate the capacity of the songwriter to be creative through the power of collaboration.
MORE INFO: apraamcos.com.au
STORY
Accumulate
Accumulate is a residency program for artists developing new contemporary work, offering time and space to deepen creative practice within a supportive, collaborative environment. Bringing together peers from diverse artistic disciplines, the program prioritises reflection, experimentation, and cross-pollination — encouraging artists to engage with new ideas and approaches. During the residency, artists are invited to share their practice to broaden perspectives and enrich collective understanding of the creative process. Where relevant, the program is further supported through facilitation and mentorship from the Shark Island creative team
Who can apply?
This residency is open to both emerging and established artists, groups or individuals working across the following disciplines: Theatre artists and directors; Dancers and choreographers; Composers and musicians; Poets and writers; Visual artists.
Artists are selected for the residency based on the strength of their ideas, their capacity to articulate the project’s development, and its potential impact. Selected works may also be invited for further development and presentation at The Old Store.
We welcome applications from artists of all ages and diverse backgrounds who are dedicated to creating new work that reflects the contemporary Australian story within a broader global context.
Closing Date: 8 March 2026
Dates: 6–19 July 2026
Applications Open: January 2026
THEATRE
Story Assembly
Closing Date: 15 December 2025
Residency 1: 27 April–3 May 2026
Residency 2: 14–20 Sept 2026
Residency 3: Early February 2027
Story Assembly is a dynamic ensemble-based program that develops new contemporary theatre work that aligns with Shark Island’s current creative projects. Over the course of three residencies (five weeks in total), nine theatre artists will be given the opportunity to immerse themselves in a rich collaborative environment that will encourage experimentation, embodied exploration and the creation of new contemporary work.
The project is through application, and the artists will be supported through a grant as well as time, accommodation and nourishment at Shark Island Kangaroo Valley. It is a year-long investment of theatre artists in the first ten years of their practice and the project’s intention is to seed the ground for the future sustainability of these artists through bold truth telling.
The program is facilitated and directed by Sam Chester.
Hear from the participants:
Residency 1: 27 April–3 May 2026
Residency 2: 14–20 Sept 2026
Residency 3: Early February 2027
Griffin Studio — New Australian Playwrights through Griffin Theatre
Griffin Studio is an esteemed artist development program — a year-long creative laboratory for early-career playwrights. Each year, Studio artists develop one or more projects in collaboration with Griffin’s Artistic team, while also undertaking workshops on playwriting and theatre making. The program offers time, space, and resources for artists to create work with the potential to shape the cultural landscape. In 2026, for the first time, Shark Island Kangaroo Valley will support this initiative by hosting a week-long residency, offering a focused and immersive environment for creative exploration.
MORE INFO: griffintheatre.com.au
FILM
Shark Island Foundation Feature Docs Pitch
The Shark Island Foundation Feature Docs Pitch gives producers the opportunity to pitch at AIDC 2026 (2–5 March) for the chance to receive a development grant of $25,000 and to participate in a four-day creative residency at Shark Island Kangaroo Valley (12–15 May, 2026) to progress a feature documentary project.
More >
Producers are invited to submit a feature-length documentary project (75 mins+) in development with a plan for theatrical or streaming release. The story can be of any genre but must be character-driven, have a distinctive point of view, with a creative vision and clear artistic style. Ideally, it should have the potential to shift thinking.
The Lab launches in 2026 as a four-day creative residency. Two members from each team will work closely with acclaimed filmmaker and story consultant Joseph Nizeti and the Shark Island team, who will provide tailored guidance to help shape and elevate these stories.
PLEASE NOTE: Applications for the Shark Island Feature Docs Pitch are made through AIDC’s Cut to the Chase program with applications closing on Friday 23 January, 2026 at 23:59 AEDT (or late deadline Friday 30 January, 2026).
PLEASE NOTE: Projects must also apply to Documentary Australia for fiscal sponsorship (round closes 27th January, 2026)
Residency dates: 12–15 May, 2026
Applications close: Friday 23 January, 2026 at 23:59 AEDT (or late deadline Friday 30 January, 2026)
First Nations Impact Lab
The First Nations Impact Lab is a five-day immersive learning experience for documentary and screen-based changemakers using storytelling as a tool for cultural, environmental, and social change. Now in its third year, the Lab builds capacity by uplifting practitioners who may not self-identify as Impact Producers, yet are driving systems change and strengthening community through storytelling, education, cultural leadership or organising.
Across five days, eight participants will gather at Shark Island Kangaroo Valley on Wodi Wodi country for a rare opportunity to connect with leading practitioners from across the globe to learn strategies for activating community-determined solutions, influencing policy, protecting Country, and prioritising the voices and needs of First Peoples.
MORE INFO: garuwa.com
ART
Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship
The Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship, administered by the Art Gallery of New South Wales, will once again extend its support to outstanding artists aged 20 to 30 with an established body of work. The scholarship offers two residency pathways: an international residency at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris, and a two-week residency at Shark Island Kangaroo Valley. The Shark Island Kangaroo Valley residency program, now in its sixth year, will host five artists simultaneously in November 2026. Each artist will receive $10,000 and take part in a two-week immersive residency that includes a program developed in collaboration with the Brett Whiteley Studio.
MORE INFO: artgallery.nsw.gov.au
MUSIC
SongHubs Stories
SongHubs is a flagship collaborative songwriting program by APRA AMCOS that brings together emerging and established songwriters, composers, and producers from around the world. It provides opportunities for creators to connect, share ideas, and work together in a professional studio environment to write new, commercially focused songs. As part of this program, and for the first time in 2026, Shark Island will be offering time and space for an immersive five-day songwriting residency designed for narrative-led songwriters, focusing on the transformative power of storytelling in music. Curated by renowned singer/songwriter Jenny Morris, this residency offers a unique opportunity to delve deep into the art of crafting compelling narratives through song. The goal of the residency is to help harness the power of story, examine the narrative form of a song and elevate the capacity of the songwriter to be creative through the power of collaboration.
MORE INFO: apraamcos.com.au
STORY
Accumulate
Accumulate is a residency program for artists developing new contemporary work, offering time and space to deepen creative practice within a supportive, collaborative environment. Bringing together peers from diverse artistic disciplines, the program prioritises reflection, experimentation, and cross-pollination — encouraging artists to engage with new ideas and approaches. During the residency, artists are invited to share their practice to broaden perspectives and enrich collective understanding of the creative process. Where relevant, the program is further supported through facilitation and mentorship from the Shark Island creative team
Who can apply?
This residency is open to both emerging and established artists, groups or individuals working across the following disciplines: Theatre artists and directors; Dancers and choreographers; Composers and musicians; Poets and writers; Visual artists.
Artists are selected for the residency based on the strength of their ideas, their capacity to articulate the project’s development, and its potential impact. Selected works may also be invited for further development and presentation at The Old Store.
We welcome applications from artists of all ages and diverse backgrounds who are dedicated to creating new work that reflects the contemporary Australian story within a broader global context.
Closing Date: 8 March 2026
Dates: 6–19 July 2026
Applications Open: January 2026
