KUCHING: The WAK Festival returns for its eighth edition this year with a call for proposals under the theme "Shoots".
State Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said the community-driven, multi-genre festival had grown into one of Sarawak's most anticipated creative events.
He called on the creative community in Sarawak, Malaysia and beyond to submit their proposals for this year's edition, which will take place in Kuching throughout October.
Satellite festivals will be held in Sibu and Miri on June 12-14 and June 19-21, respectively.
"Musicians, visual artists, performers, filmmakers, craft practitioners, culinary innovators, sports organisers and lifestyle curators, step forward and be part of this movement," he said when launching the call for proposals here on Friday (March 6).
Abdul Karim said emerging talents and established practitioners alike were encouraged to participate in the festival, whose full name is "What About Kuching".
With the state government's continued support and the strength of the creative community, he added, this year's edition was poised to be the biggest and most impactful to date.
Festival director Donald Tan said WAK 2026 called for bold new ideas, experimental formats, cross-disciplinary collaborations and creative startups under the "Shoots" theme.
He said the festival received 110 proposals last year, with more expected this year.
"In the coming weeks, we will engage with various embassies and cultural attaches to see if they can sponsor groups in performing arts or visual arts to stage their events in Kuching in October.
"Last year we had the Singapore Arts Council sponsoring a Peranakan show in Kuching, which was very well received, so we hope to have more of that," he said.
Proposals for the Sibu and Miri festivals must be submitted by the end of April, while the deadline for the Kuching event is at the end of July.
