TIME Taps Austin

Austin photographer snags biggest gig in photojournalism with TIME Person of the Year cover

Arguably the most discussed — and often controversial — media moment of the year, TIME's Person of the Year was revealed Wednesday. Here in Austin, it won't be who is on the cover (The Ebola Fighters) but who photographed the cover that may be most interesting.

When he received the assignment, Schutmaat had no idea it would be a part of the magazine's most important issue.

This year, TIME tapped local photographer Bryan Schutmaat to shoot Dr. Kent Brantley, a Ft. Worth physician and the first American diagnosed with Ebola. Part of a series of five images for the cover, Schutmaat traveled north to document the famous doctor. "I met [Brantley] at his church in Fort Worth. TIME’s photo editors and I felt that since he was a man of faith and since he was guided by that faith, it would be good to photograph him in there," Schutmaat said in an interview with TIME.

When he received the assignment, Schutmaat had no idea it would be a part of the magazine's most important issue. "I just thought I was doing a big story on Ebola that would end up somewhere inside the magazine,” Schutmaat told TIME. “I didn’t think it would be such a huge deal.”

Indeed, it is hard to imagine a moment in photojournalism as "huge" as landing the Person of the Year cover. Schutmaat and Dublin-based photographer Jackie Nickerson were commissioned to do more than 20 portraits in locations around the world.

As the photographers worked around the globe, they were unaware that they were creating photos for People of the Year story. It wasn't until TIME photo editors asked for the final high-resolution images that the photographers were filled in — and promptly sworn to secrecy.

But the secret is now out, and Schutmaat took to Facebook to tell friends and fans the good news. "I'm still reeling from the fact that I was given this assignment," the photographer said.

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Read a recent interview Schutmaat did with CultureMap here. To find out more about TIME's People of the Year issue, head here.

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Sonic Boost

Musical gala spotlights 20 Austin acts including Nemegata, Quentin Arispe

Photo courtesy of Spaceflight Records

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On January 18, charitable organization Sonic Guild will award $150,000 in grants to 20 deserving local bands and solo artists at the Sonic Guild Ball. For the first time ever, tickets are available to the public for this ceremony and show.

This is the 11th year this organization has supported the Austin music scene, though readers might know the organization by its previous name, Black Fret. This public charity is headquartered here in Austin and is on a mission to support artists here (as well as in Seattle and parts of Colorado, now) with a publicly available annual membership.

In return for annual dues, members get to see a bunch of shows and attend private events; and their memberships support local music with grants. Over these years, the group has awarded grants and payments to local musicians, venues, and music businesses totaling over $6 million.

This year's grant recipients are:

Rob Baird
West 22nd
Cactus Lee
The Point
DAIISTAR
Parker Woodland
Nemegata
Deer Fellow
Elijah Delgado
Grocery Bag
Quentin Arispe
Shelley King
Geto Gala
Next of Kin
promqueen
Lew Apollo
S. L. Houser
Harvest Thieves
TV's Daniel
Stella and the Very Messed

These artists were selected through a year-long process where Sonic Guild members, advisors, and prior grant recipients nominated, lobbied for, and finally voted on their favorite artists.

These 20 winners will receive not only grants at the upcoming Sonic Guild Ball, but also mentoring, and will be paid for any performance they do for Sonic Guild audiences in the future. In fact, half of the awarded bands will be performing at the ball itself.

In between performances there will be videos and live testimonials telling the stories of how past grant winners have used their funds to boost their music careers with album recordings, tours, instruments, and more.

“Naming these 20 2024 Sonic Guild Artists puts us at over 200 individual acts we have recognized with a Sonic Guild grant,” said co-founder and Executive Director of Sonic Guild Austin Matt Ott in a press release. “Every member that joins Sonic Guild sends a powerful message to our city’s musicians that their contributions to our culture matters. We must support our music scene as our great city grows to make sure it thrives for generations to come.”

The 2024 Sonic Guild Ball will be held at the Long Center for the first time ever. Individual public tickets are available online and range between $24 and $130 depending on the seat.

Austinites can also become members of Sonic Guild and have access to more than 30 live shows this next season, and will get to vote for the lucky artists that will be awarded with grants at next year's Sonic Guild Ball.

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