The closing date for nominations for the ACT Awards 2008 is July 11, 2008. This is the last opportunity to submit your nominations of any outstanding individuals, projects, institutions and organisations for their significant contribution to South African arts, culture and heritage for the 10th annual Arts & Culture Trust Awards.

The Arts & Culture Trust plays an exceptionally significant role in supporting local arts, culture and heritage and the annual Awards, presented by Nedbank and supported by CLASSICfeel Magazine and Fine Music Radio 101.3, forms an integral of this support structure. The prestige associated with being nominated, chosen as a finalist or winning an award serves as a measure of quality in the sector.

Finalists and winners for the ACT Awards 2008 will be selected by an independent panel of judges in various categories: Arts Management, Arts Education, Arts Media, Cultural Development, Creative Design, Creative Arts, Heritage and three Lifetime Achievement awards. Winners in the Lifetime category, presented to outstanding individuals for a significant contribution during their lifetime in the areas of visual art or craft, music or dance and theatre or literature are selected at the discretion of the ACT Board of Trustees.

Previous winners of the prestigious ACT Awards have included, amongst others, Sandile Mamela, Michelle Constant, Bridget van Oerle and Lynette Marais as well as various arts and culture projects, like the South African Schools Festivals organised by the Arts Education Department of the Grahamstown Foundation, Buskaid and Artslink.co.za, amongst others. Winners of the prestigious ACT Lifetime Achievement Award have included Gibson Kente, Es’kia Mphalele, Sylvia Glasser, Sophie Mgcina, Esther Mahlangu and most recently Ronnie Govender.

Since its inception, ACT has provided funding in the amount of R12 million for more than 500 projects in all arts disciplines across South Africa. Principal sponsor Nedbank has contributed a total amount of R8 million to ACT. In addition to providing the funding for the ACT Awards, Nedbank Affinities also annually subsidises the operating costs of ACT.

All nominations must be submitted on the prescribed nomination forms which can be downloaded from the ACT website at www.act.org.za