Writer: Chérie Lynn Canada
2 min read January 2024 — Many cities in the United States are beginning to tap into their potential to showcase arts and culture to attract a diverse audience to the Entertainment, Arts & Media sector. Orlando, being one of them, has seen millions of attendees at arts and cultural events as local patrons as well as tourists play a role in boosting the local economy in Greater Orlando.
The arts are pivotal to economic growth, attracting a diverse range of patrons that helps to generate revenue, allowing for more jobs and developing the community. Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 (AEP6) recently completed a state-specific study for Florida along with its usual national survey that highlighted the impact on expenditures, income, and government revenue in Florida and Orange County, in particular.
In FY23, the arts and cultural industry generated $5.8 billion of economic activity in the Sunshine State, including $2.9 billion by nonprofit arts and culture organizations. In addition to supporting 91,270 full-time jobs and generating $3.8 billion in resident household income, the industry delivered $694.7 million in local, state, and federal government revenue.
Meanwhile in Orange County, arts events contributed $113 million in expenditures in the last fiscal year, with nearly half contributed by local residents.
The survey also focused on equity and inclusion to be sure that communities such as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and ALAANA (African, Latinx, Asian, Arab, Native American) are not underrepresented and reflect the arts and culture community as a whole.
“It’s our job to help make art thrive,” United Arts of Central Florida Director of Public Grants and Advocacy Trudy Wild said, as cited by WMFE. “That’s our tagline, to try to support and bring those opportunities together. We need to reach more into diverse communities.”
Some of the most well-attended creative events, such as the Electric Daisy Carnival and Florida Film Festival, are detailed on the Creative City Project, a community resource that provides useful information on the Greater Orlando neighborhood’s with a thriving arts and music scene.
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