Connecting the Arts and Business: Sonia Sakamoto Jog profile up at Yonge Street Media

One great thing about doing arts-related profiles for Yonge Street Media is it opens my eyes to a variety of different people working in the Toronto arts scene.

My latest profile, published this week, had me meet up with Sonia Sakamoto Jog, a Rotman MBA and Computer Science BA who went the somewhat unlikely route of helming a small nonprofit arts festival after graduation—the Reel Asian Film Festival.

I found Sakamoto Jog, who has increased partnerships and sponsorships for the fest by 40% in just three years, to be very articulate around potential connection points between business and the nonprofit arts community. Here's an excerpt from Yonge Street story:

"I think it's easy in the arts to start to see yourself within a silo, and maybe not appreciate how complex industry as a whole can be," Sakamoto-Jog tells me when I visit her at Reel Asian's sunny 401 Richmond offices. A long to-do list sits in the middle of her desk, while a sponsorships flowchart, dotted with colourful Post-Its, hangs on the wall behind her. When she talks, it's with confidence and no small amount of energy.

"There's a lot of common goals within [the arts and business]," she says. "But I think that we in the arts can feel like we're on opposite sides of the equation, like 'We need this from you. How can we sell it to you?' rather than 'What are you trying to do that we we're trying to do, and that we can do together?'"

To find out more about Sakamoto Jog and her perspective on arts management, read on at Yonge Street.

And if you want to join a conversation with Yonge Street about emerging leadership in our city, cultural and otherwise, be sure to RSVP for its free March 22 panel on the topic.

(Image of Sonia Sakamoto Jog by Tanja-Tiziana for Yonge Street Media)