"The scholarship is a fantastic initiative," said director/producer John Cavallaro of www.thelume.tv/.
"It broadens the horizon for Australian film makers into an international sphere, connecting them to key industry people they would have never met otherwise."
Despite the growth of Australia's creative sector in recent years, isolation is still a challenge facing those in the industry.
"Sometimes as a creative person we tend to be so absorbed in our own projects that we don't realise there are literally hundreds of incredibly talented people all around Australia with similar dreams and challenges charting the same course," said Mr. Cavallaro, noting that this leaves room for organisations such as SPARC to bridge the gap and foster creative community-building in a non-threatening format.
"To some the thought of 'networking' is intimidating or insincere" he said.
"I have found SPARC to be the opposite. To me it is almost like coming home. The SPARC community gives us a vehicle to engage with like these like-minded individuals as well as been inspired and encouraged to create authentic art."
Recent SPARC networking events across Australia saw dozens of creative types gather around share platters and shared values, hearing from speakers such as Father Brendan Purcell whose knowledge of the journey of writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn gave him insight into the role of the Christian artist as a dissident in society.
The success of such events is vital to the future of the Australian creative industries, creating a platform for faith-based idea-sharing, and building a foundation of relationship between culture influencers.
For more information on SPARC or the USA scholarship, visit www.sparc.org.au/. Applications close on Friday 24th January, 2014.
Grace Mathew is a Sydney-based writer, speaker and presenter.
Grace's archive of articles may be viewed at
www.pressserviceinternational.org/grace-mathew.html