The Mofo spotlight will be turning North in summer 2018, with the Tasmanian Government investing $1 million to support the move.
For the first time, Launceston City will host Mofo, with local, national and international artists, music, dance and a free street festival called the Launceston Block Party.
The 2018 event will mark a decade for Mofo in Tasmania. Over that time Mofo has captivated locals, and drawn an audience from across the globe.
It is great news that Launceston will now share in the great cultural and economic benefits of Mofo, which attracted more than 20,000 people last year.
The investment includes the continuation of the $350,000 for Mofo in Hobart in 2018, and $650,000 in new funding to take the event north.
Importantly, the funding includes $100,000 for Mona to create a Launceston legacy, which could include event and or cultural infrastructure and business improvements that helps local events or cultural organisations.
There’s no doubt that Mofo’s Northern exposure will also create great opportunities for other local events, artists and performers to collaborate and leverage off the icon.
Together with major sports events like Hawthorn AFL games, Supercars at Symmons Plains and Targa Tasmania, Northern Tasmania offers a sensational array of international class entertainment.
This will help Tasmania reach our target of attracting 1.5 million visitors to the state each year by 2020, and achieve our goal of getting tourists to spend more and stay longer in regional areas.
I congratulate the Mofo creators David Walsh and Brian Ritchie on making the festival all that it is today and extending the experience to the North, and I thank their team for continuing to surprise us all.