As previously reported by ESCBubble, plans are in place to hold an Australian National Final called ‘Eurovision – Australia Decides’ on Saturday 9th February 2019 and the ‘Eurovision Asia Song Contest’ on Saturday 7th December 2019.

We can now reveal that a full report went to the ‘Events, Tourism & Governance Committee’ meeting on Thursday 13th September 2018 and a decision was taken in regards to the two events.  The Committee is the body where elected Councillors from the local Council make decisions on the local tourist economy, including the allocation of funding for any events they wish to promote.

At the meeting on 13th September the Committee carried a vote to support a financial investment to be given to an organisation called Blink TV for both ‘Eurovision – Australia Decides’ and the ‘Eurovision Asia Song Contest’ with the money coming from the Council’s ‘Events Reserves’ fund.  This basically means that approval for the two events to take place in the Gold Coast was given with some previously reserved funding provided to make sure that they happen.  A copy of the Report can be read here and we have provided selected quotes below.

About Blink TV

The report approved by the Council states that Blink TV will produce both ‘Eurovision -Australia Decides’ and the ‘Eurovision Asia Song Contest’.

Blink TV is a highly respected Australian production company, 50% owned by Village Roadshow, with a strong reputation for delivering successful events in the live music industry. Blink TV has secured the exclusive Australian right to deliver a national selection series event (Australia Decides) from 2019 to 2029.

Additionally Blink TV and SBS were successful in securing a license to hold the Eurovision Asia format from 2019 to 2031.

Eurovision – Australia Decides

The Report gave the following information about ‘Eurovision – Australia Decides’ on Page 67 of the report:

Schedule to be:

• Friday 8 February – Jury Show
• Saturday 9 February – Matinee Show
• Saturday 9 February – Live FInal.

10 to 12 acts will participate with the live final on the Saturday evening broadcast on SBS.  The winner will be decided based on 50% jury and 50% public vote.  An audience of around 4,000 is expected to see each show.

Artist Selection

Page 68 of the Report contains the following:

Blink TV will reach out to (and is already in discussions with some of) Australia’s best and up-and-coming songwriters to submit an original song.  Orginal songs are then paired with Australian performers (such as Delta Goodrem, Peking Duk, Ricki-Lee Coulter) who will work with the songwriter to produce the final version of the song.

Songs will be produced and released prior to Christmas to allow the songs to gain audience support and awareness before the show.  The submission date to send songs to participate in the show must be made by today, 4th November.

Eurovision Asia Song Contest

The Draft Schedule in the report has the following proposed timetable (from Page 68):

• Saturday 30 November – Delegations Arrive
• Sunday 1 December – Red carpet and official welcome party, EuroAsia club opening
• Monday 2 December – First individual rehearsals, Press Meet and Greet
• Tuesday 3 December – First individual rehearsals, Press Meet and Greet
• Wednesday 4 December – Second individual rehearsals, Press conference
• Thursday 5 December – Second individual rehearsals, Press conference
• Friday 6 December – Dress Rehearsal 1 – media, Dress Rehearsal 2 (ticketed) – Jury vote and audience
• Saturday 7 December – Dress Rehearsal 3 (ticketed) – audience, 3 hour Grand Final (ticketed) – public voting, Winner’s Press Conference

16 countries are scheduled to participate and the Contest will be broadcast to all participating countries and potentially to non-participating ones too.  The voting will be 50% July, 50% Televote.  As well as the EuroAsia club there will be a Eurovision Asia Village and selected Fan Sites.

Page 69 of the reports contains plans for SBS’s broadcast include a Reality TV Show during the week of the Contest (Monday to Friday) consisting of 30 minute shows following the contestants behind the scenes with interviews and footage of them exploring the Gold Coast.  The EBU will be the distributor of the contest outside of Asia, and it is also expected to be broadcast live on the Eurovision Song Contest’s YouTube channel.  The report suggests that 200 million viewers will watch the contest.

In regards to which artists will take place, the reports states that

Negotiations are underway with high-profile international performing artists from the Asia Pacific region.

Further Media plans

There are also details provided about the selection and media schedule leading up to ‘Eurovision – Australia Decides’ (page 70) including the “staggered announcement of artists” between November and December this year.  It is also stated that details regarding the ticketing will be released in December, with the hosts to be announced in January.

In regards to the ‘Eurovision Asia Song Contest’ (Page 71) the announcement of all participating countries, the theme and artwork plus the ticketing details will not be made until May 2019, with the show presenters expected to be announced in July 2019.

The level of investment agreed by the Gold Coast Council was ‘redacted’ (as shown on Page 76) and therefore it is unknown how much money has been agreed to be allocated to the two events.  However we do know from Page 72 that the Eurovision Asia format will return to the Gold Coast every 4 years.   The economic benefits from hosting the two events there are also documented.

Check back with ESCBubble as we bring you the actual details of the two events as they evolve.  Let us know your thoughts on our Social Media channels!