An Australian arts and entertainment professional now based between USA and Australia, Sam Cook is cross-artform practitioner, educator, arts manager and leader in Indigenous Arts.

A retired musician, she was the Director of The Dreaming Festival and a programmer of the Woodford Folk Festival. Artistically, Sam is a playwright, writer, visual artist and graphic designer. Administratively, Sam started working in publishing ahead of becoming the CEO of a leading Australian Theatre Company before launching her company KMBA events.

 

Recipient of the UK Arts Council Fellowship in 2007 and 2011, winner of National Aboriginal Youth of the Year in 1999 and Broome Aboriginal Artist of the Year in 1998, Sam was the founding Aboriginal columnist for Artshub and Tracker, and founder of Australia’s Blak History Month.
 

Sam has extensive experience in Indigenous arts management, tech start-ups,  business planning, market development, international strategy and grant-making, having secured over 11million dollars for Indigenous arts projects across her career.

She is a Nyikina from the Kimberley region of Western Australia and divides her time between Los Angeles,

Brisbane and Cairns when not on assignment globally.