Australian PR Agency Launches $20,000 Accelerator Program for Arts and Entertainment Sector

Australian PR agency Agent99 has launched a new accelerator program offering $20,000 in communications support to an arts or entertainment business, as the sector continues to grapple with rising costs and changing consumer spending habits.

The Arts & Entertainment Accelerator Program will provide one successful applicant with three months of pro-bono PR strategy and execution, aimed at helping creative businesses build their profile, reach new audiences and drive engagement. 

The initiative follows Agent99's inaugural Food & Beverage Accelerator Program in 2025 and comes ahead of the independent agency's 20th anniversary in 2027.

Applications are open to a broad range of businesses and projects, including music festivals, live events, artists, theatre companies, productions and other entertainment ventures. 

The successful applicant will receive services valued at $20,000, with support tailored to their business needs. This could include media relations, artist and talent profiling, media training, event launches, creator engagement, partnerships and social media content.

The program arrives at a challenging time for Australia's live entertainment industry, with rising operating costs and cost-of-living pressures creating additional hurdles for promoters, artists and event organisers looking to attract audiences.

Agent99 Founder and Director Sharon Zeev Poole said the agency wanted to use its industry experience to support a creative business with the potential to grow. 

“Some of our highlight work over the past 20 years has been in this space. We’ve helped launch everything from Winning Moves MONOPOLY products and Kids Play Festival at The Pavillion to SBS’s Memory Bites show with Matt Moran, film festivals and other entertainment-led campaigns," she explained. 

"A great idea is only part of the equation. You still need to give people a reason to notice it, talk about it, buy a ticket, tune in or pick it off the shelf. We know what smart, targeted PR can do for a business, so we want to put that experience behind one ambitious arts or entertainment brand that could genuinely benefit from it.”

The agency's previous accelerator supported Surry Hills restaurant 40Res, which received communications assistance through the food and beverage initiative. “Our inaugural Food & Beverage Accelerator Program showed us how much impact this type of support can have when you create the right partnership," Zeev Poole continued. 

She said the latest program would focus on businesses where targeted communications support could deliver tangible results. “For this new program, whether it’s helping a festival sell more tickets, building the profile of an artist, launching a new game or getting a production in front of the right audiences, we’re looking for an idea where we can make a measurable difference.”

To be eligible, applicants must operate in Australia's arts or entertainment sector, demonstrate a clear business or communications challenge and must not have worked with a PR agency in the past two years.

Applications are open now and close on December 1st, 2026, with the three-month program scheduled to begin in mid-January 2027.

See here for details.