
Inaugural Participants
These four artists took part in the 2022 Leap programme. Read about the artists and their practices here.
Alexandra Craciun
Alexandra Craciun is a Romanian artist based in Dublin, classically trained in performing arts who has recently pivoted towards the wondrous world of writing and Illustration. She started her Cultural Entrepreneurship experience back when she co-founded Bibabo Independent Theater Company and continues with an IADT Postgraduate in Cultural Management, soon to be completed.
Creating and performing for young audiences has been a pillar of her artistic belief for over 10 years and the journey has only begun.
Fernanda Ferrari
Fernanda Ferrari is a Brazilian multidisciplinary artist who has an extraordinary passion for inspiring children to experiment with art and use creativity as a tool of transformation.
In 2021 she was awarded by the Arts Council the Young People, Children, and Education Bursary Award to study puppetry. As a performer, she was part of the Five Lamps Arts Festival and Mother Tongues Festival.
Justyna Cwojdzińska
Justyna Cwojdzińska is an artist/voice over and a producer. She studied Theatre at Cultural College in Wrocław and holds an M.A in English Language and Literature from the University of Wrocław. Justyna has been involved in theatre productions since 2000 in Poland and when moved to Ireland she continued her work in the cultural sector. She is a founder and artistic director of Polish Arts Festival.
Justyna received an Outstanding Pole Award in the Culture Category for the work on the Festival from the Polish Government (Polish Promotional Emblem Foundation TERAZ POLSKA) under the honorary patronage of the President of the Republic of Poland. She’s very much interested in producing bilingual work, some of the examples being Nameless and Julia. She has worked with Super Paua on a bilingual project for children Stories/Opowiadania as a voice over to a total of 14 characters.
Justin Anene
Justin Anene is an actor and also a professional wrestler from the north inner city Dublin. Justin began acting in 2019 at Visions Drama School, he was taught by actor Mary Murray.
Justin’s Acting Career kicked off when he was cast in the Motien Films animation My Fairy Troublemaker where he played American teenager Tarik. Following the animation Justin was cast in the londis ad campaign working alongside BAFTA winning Damian O’Donnell.
His professional wrestling career began in 2018 when Justin was just fourteen years old making him Ireland’s youngest professional wrestler. Aside from acting and professional wrestling Justin’s hobbies include weight lifting and script writing. Justin received an award for a short film he wrote back in 2021, his short film Forever A Brother placed top 3 in the under 18 Irish short film of the year.