Ubud Writers & Readers Festival 2023 Partnership Report

WELCOME AND THANK YOU!

Last year’s Ubud Writers & Readers Festival (UWRF) was a memorable one. We were finally able to organize a fully on-the-ground event after conducting a fully online event in 2020 and a hybrid one in 2021.

As always, last year’s event was an amazing celebration filled with intellectual and creative exchanges amongst so many outstanding literary writers, journalists, activists, thinkers, and artists from different parts of the globe. It was so satisfying to be able to connect with each other again in a literary celebration against the beautiful landscape of Ubud, Bali’s cultural capital.

The theme was Uniting Humanity, a very timely topic during a period of so much polarisation, the pandemic, and world conflict. This was a common thread which bound our entire program last year, from our panel discussions and book launches to film screenings and musical performances. Each consistently raised the theme of trying to find a sense of belonging, uniting humanity, and preventing conflict.

This report combines extensive research, including over 500 surveys of attendees and partners. It bears witness to the extraordinary achievements of our loyal and new festival friends, as well as their impact on our businesses and communities beyond our festival.

In presenting this report, I’d like to express my deepest gratitude to our yearround team and volunteers who have made the 2022 Festival possible. There are many reasons to be proud of the results.

To all our partners, supporters, speakers and vendors, thank you for putting forth last year’s festival. A large-scale event like this would not be possible without our collaboration, which synergises our different field of expertise and resources.

I can’t wait to do it all again this year between 18 and 22 October. With our 20th Anniversary Edition this year, I’m sure the event is going to be the most memorable UWRF we’ll have yet.

JANET DENEEFE FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR UBUD WRITERS & READERS FESTIVAL

I feel like I’ve tripped on a rock, landed on a pillow—and I never want to leave it.

Carla Power American Writer

FESTIVAL SUMMARY

The 2022 Festival Edition shared extraordinary stories and bold ideas through the lens of this year’s theme, Memayu Hayuning Bawana, interpreted in English as Uniting Humanity. The Festival brought together a diverse mix of Indonesian and international writers, speakers, thinkers, artists, advocates, commentators, and activists, to create a space for crosscultural dialogue and connection.

MAIN PROGRAM

• 63 Main Program Sessions

• 10 Special Events

• 9 Workshops

• 9 Cultural Workshops

FREE PROGRAM

• 33 Book Launches

• Satellite Event Changemakers at Alchemy Ubud

• Art Exhibitions across different venues & galleries

• Poetry & Music Performances

• Film Screenings

HIGHLIGHTS

• The 2022 Festival returned to its original format, presenting over 160 events sprawling across different venues in Ubud. This is the first time that the Festival resumed its fully inperson format since the pandemic.

• The 2022 Festival was opened by a highly successful Gala Opening Night on the 17th of October, hosted at Puri Ubud. The Gala Opening was attended by esteemed representatives of our long-standing partners.

• The Foundation presented the Festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award to Putu Oka Sukanta, author of fiction and poetry from Singaraja, Bali. Putu has been at the forefront of Indonesia’s contemporary literary renaissance, most notably in the way he has courageously drawn on his life and personal experiences during the time of Indonesia’s New Order.

• In partnership with Writing WA, the Festival co-presented UWRF Perth between the 21st and 23rd of October 21 in Perth, Australia. Featuring Indonesia’s renowned speakers and artists such as Clarissa Goenawan, Reda Gaudamo, and Chef Wayan.

• 10 shortlisted writers for the 2021 Indonesian Emerging Writers contest launched the 2022 Festival Anthology: Mamayu Hayuning Bawana, with some of the judges and Janet DeNeefe.

• The 2022 Festival presented three satellite events with the renowned speakers, Carla Powers, Nawaz Ahmed, and Sequoia Nagamatsu. The events were supported by the Embassy of the United States and in collaboration with municipal governments and universities across Pagar Alam in South Sumatera, Jogjakarta, and East Java.

• Some of the 2022 Festival headliners include Audrey Magee, Carla Power, Joko Pinurbo, Rara Sekar, Tim Baker, Sequoia Nagamatsu, Eric Weiner, Laura Jean McKay, Saras Dewi Putri, and Sami Shah.

AUDIENCE PROFILE ATTENDEES EVALUATION

Our festival’s demographic has once again reached nearly pre-pandemic levels. The majority (76%) of the audience lived in Indonesia, and people from abroad attending the Festival made up the remaining 24%. The average survey respondent age was between 26 to 35, and the vast majority identified as female, with most of the sample reporting to be full-time professionals. An overwhelming number of the festival attendees (81%) said they came to Bali with the festival as their main purpose. Almost half (49%) said they attended the festival for four consecutive days, followed by those who attended the festival for one day (38%). There was an average in the number of survey

All surveyed audience members were asked on the venue to rate their overall Festival experience, based on its program and operations. Responses were split

PROGRAM EXPERIENCE

into five measures; terrible, poor, average, good and excellent. The following results highlight how the survey respondents at the festival venues rated their experience.

Attendees are very satisfied with the entire Festival program with an average satisfaction score of 4.24 out of 5.

OPERATIONS EXPERIENCE

Attendees are very satisfied with the Festival operations, such as the website and ticketing purchasing process, with a score with an average satisfaction score of 4.21 out of 5.

WEBSITE 4

4.07

TICKETING SYSTEM MARKETING DESIGN & BRANDING

4.3

ATTENDEES EVALUATION

The Festival’s survey asks attendees to identify how much they spent during their festival stay.

4.43

PROMOTER SCORE

The excellent promoter score of 4.43 indicates a high likelihood of the festival being recommended to friends and colleagues by the attendees.

4.46

Respondents were asked how much they were spending on accommodation per night and person. The average per night and person spent on accommodation is 378,000 Indonesian Rupiah.

ACCOMODATION SHOPPING

In addition to accommodation and transportation expenditure, our respondents’ average daily spendings on souvenirs and books were 613,000 Indonesian Rupiah.

TRANSPORTATION

Attendees spent an average of 255,000 Indonesian Rupiah for transportation purposes daily. The majority of respondents used private transportation to the venues, such as cars and motorbikes.

FOOD AND BEVERAGE

The daily average amount spent for food and beverage from the respondents were 222,000 Indonesian Rupiah.

VENDOR EVALUATION SUMMARY

Festival vendors were asked to rate their overall Festival experience. All vendors surveyed agreed that their partnership with us helped their business achieve its objectives, and the vast majority is considering partnering with UWRF again.

With an overall average rating value of 4.69 out of 5, it’s clear that vendors feel like the Festival team was accessible and responsive to their organisation’s needs.

Communications

Vendors reported having a positive overall experience. This was proved by a score of 4.07 out of 5, which demonstrates an excellent level of vendor loyalty and a high likelihood of joining the festival again.

LOYALTY 4.53 4.03 4.82 4.05

4.76 4 4.64 4.23

Payment Compliance Logistics and Administrations

Well Managed Partnership

It was an absolutely brilliant weekend for the Festival. It provided such a wonderful atmosphere, and it was heartening to see so many passionate people attend.

Christopher Klein Survey Respondent

PARTNER AND SUPPORTERS

The Festival is extremely proud of its partners and supporters, who are highly contributive to the success of 2022 Festival. Without them, our Festival’s return would not have been possible, especially in its inperson format.

The support received is crucial to the creation of another successful Festival, as well as achieving the border goals of the Foundation. This also includes the Yayasan Mudra Swari Saraswati, venue support, cultural and arts program events, author’s fee, media coverage, monetary support, and much more.

The Festival organiser is also delighted to have a significant number of Bali and Ubud-based businesses as our partners and collaborators for the festival. These partnerships further strengthened the Foundation’s commitment to empower local communities through the creation of collaborative, inclusive environments and as an effort to promote those who were affected by the Global Pandemic.

It is with deep gratitude that we thank all our partners, who lead our giving community, and we acknowledge all supporters who stood firmly behind UWRF. This enabled us to achieve our mission to spread literature and the arts, both in Indonesia and beyond through the Festival.

Janet DeNeefe Founder and Director

Dalang Ki Purbo Asmoro and his 18 musicians and singers from Solo, with their Javanese wayang provided one of the highlights of a very memorable festival weekend.

Lauren McKenzie Survey respondent

MARKETING REPORT SOCIAL MEDIA WEBSITE

In 2022, Social Media channels proved to once again be a primary pathway for the Festival to spread the word. It spread the word far and wide, as fans and followers shared the fun and camaraderie they experienced at the 2022 Festival Edition. The Festival’s Social Media presence has

also been an effective tool to increase ticket sales, and therefore, contributed to the overall success.

The key numbers below refer to the 30-day festival period from October 3rd to November 3rd, 2022.

The Festival’s website has remained the main tool for communicating with new and existing audiences. Most importantly, it also allowed them to navigate the massive program, plan their festival itinerary, and purchase tickets. During the month of the festival, the website saw

826,495 77.2% 107

a total number of 176,035 page views, and a peak of 35,502 sessions.

The key numbers below refer to the 30-day festival period from 3 October to 3 November 2022.

Mobile users made up 67%, with the remaining 32% from desktops, and tablet users making up the last 1%.

NEWSLETTER MEDIA COVERAGE AND PARTNERSHIPS

The 2022 Festival newsletter strategy aimed to engage with our existing loyal subscribers, as well as actively develop and grow new audiences through supportive posts via the Festival’s Social Media channels. Overall, the newsletter continued to enjoy strong growth in subscribers and engagement.

The newsletter highlights below refer to the 30-day festival period from 3 October to 3 November, 2022.

14,370

Our custom partner program offers coverage through a wide range of print and digital platforms. Over 60 media partners and supporters were featured prominently from pre-event marketing to live festival and post-event promotion.

The festival also saw over 100 media articles and mentions during the festival period, including The Jakarta Post, The Wall Street Journal, and South China Morning Post.

31

Number of Media Partnerships Newsletters Opened Press Conferences

6 60+ 32%

45,349

3

108 6%

Campaigns Sent Accredited Media Average Open Rate Total Articles Average Click Rate

The 2022 Festival delivered a very special program and some deeply moving conversations, which will stick in the minds of those who saw them for a long time to come.

Pricilla Cresheilla Survey respondent

OUR STEWARDSHIP

Yayasan Mudra Swari Saraswati is an independent, not-for-profit foundation committed to enriching the lives and livelihoods of Indonesians through a range of community-building arts, cultural, and culinary programs. It was founded in 2003 by Janet DeNeefe and Ketut Suardana as a healing project in response to the first Bali bombing. The goal of the Foundation is to help fulfill the creative needs of Indonesia, its individuals, and its communities while showcasing its cultural diversity—both traditional and contemporary— to the world. Creating a space for cross-cultural exchange and open-minded dialogue and discussion is at the heart of the If you would like to partner with us again next year

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