Tasmanian creators crash the TikTok Awards – and put Tassie on the map
Tasmanian creators Kosta Genaris and Rhianna Farnan have scored spots at Australia’s biggest social media awards – a big moment for a state often overlooked in the industry’s media landscape.
When Kosta Genaris realised he wasn’t invited to this year’s TikTok Awards he did what any content creator would do: he posted about it.
“I was a little bit hurt, so I decided the best way to get attention was to make some viral videos,” he said.
“In one of them I was actually trying to bribe TikTok to invite me, and the other one that got their attention was a dancing video.”
Along with lifestyle creator Rhianna Farnan, Mr Genaris represents a growing cohort of Tasmanians building profiles on the platform, which allows its users to produce short or long form videos of just about any subject.
They say their presence at the ceremony – Australia’s largest social media creator celebration – validates not only their work, but the Tasmanian industry on the whole.
“Tassie is often forgotten when it comes to Australian media, whether it’s social media or reality TV,” Ms Farnan said.
“It hurts the Tasmanian creative industry when we can’t go and network with those bigger creators.”
Mr Genaris added: “Tasmania is just starting to get more representation.”
“We’ve got a lot of big creators down here, and this will hopefully mean more opportunities will come.”
Both creators – who are parents and work full-time – were keen to emphasise the work that goes into their craft.
“It’s not being a paramedic or a nurse of course, but it’s not an easy thing to do to be confident and put yourself out there,” Ms Farnan said.
“You have to chase opportunities especially in Tassie, but the biggest tip of them all is to just upload.”
Ms Farnan and Mr Genaris will attend the event along with the Fitzy Twins, who have repeatedly gone viral with their flawless “newsreader voice” parodies.
The awards take place in Sydney on Wednesday night.
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Originally published as Tasmanian creators crash the TikTok Awards – and put Tassie on the map
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