Your Support Helps Build Indiana’s Creative Future

Thanks for staying connected to Pattern. This year we focused on the work that strengthens Indiana’s creative economy in practical, measurable ways, the kind that supports talent, builds industry connections, and gives communities real tools for growth.

We, along with Pathemy Strategies, supported two regions (Our Southern Indiana and Central Indiana Regional Development Authority) through their Lilly Endowment-supported READI 2.0 creative economy studies, helping them map assets, identify gaps, and plan for the next stage of development. These strategies will influence how local leaders invest in talent, small businesses, and creative infrastructure.

We moved the Creative Economy Playbook and Data Dashboard forward. Indiana has never had a shared framework or a central data source for this work. Now it will. And one of the clearest examples of pattern’s long-term impact is Ty Stratton, who came to us as an intern years ago and is now leading development of the statewide Dashboard. As he put it, investment follows data. When you can measure something, you can make the case for it. His journey shows what happens when young talent is supported early and stays connected to a mission that matters.

We continued piloting the SPACE Residency, working hands-on with creative entrepreneurs who are building stronger business foundations and clearer growth paths.

We launched the Pattern Alumni Network,  officially reconnecting past interns and fellows across the country and giving them a place to stay linked to Indiana’s creative ecosystem. It’s part community, part home base, and part invitation to boomerang back into a state that needs their talent. And this year, we added 11 new interns and fellows to that growing network.

Our partnerships deepened with groups shaping Indiana’s future: Film Indy, Indiana Independent Venue Alliance, Ball State, Butler University, AIGA, Powderkeg, Indiana Arts Commission, Indy Design Week, and others. That collaborative energy is turning into a real advantage for the state.

We supported advocacy efforts to strengthen the Film and Media Tax Credit, including pushing for transferability — a key step toward attracting more production, jobs, and investment.

And we continued telling Indiana’s creative stories, helping partners like Life in Indy, Central Library, Kurt Vonnegut Museum, Phoenix Theatre, Indiana Economic Development Corp., BUTTER, and IU Innovates share their work through print and digital channels reaching thousands. Stories shape reputation, and reputation shapes opportunity.

Our events — from the Indiana Creative Economy Summit to State of Film — connected hundreds of creatives, founders, and industry leaders. Those rooms are where new collaborations, companies, and ideas start.

This movement keeps growing because our community continues to invest in Indiana’s creative future. If you’re able to support this work as we close out the year, it helps us carry real momentum into 2026.

Count me in, I want to support this work!

Thanks for walking with us as we build a stronger creative economy for Indiana.

Polina

P.S. Gifts made before December 31 ensure we begin 2026 with clarity and the resources needed to move this work forward.

MAKING DATA WORK FOR CREATIVE INDUSTRIES

During our recent 2025 Creative Economy Summit, one of the most talked-about moments was the live demo of the Creative Economy Dashboard by Ty Stratton, a data engineer and former Pattern intern. Designed to visualize Indiana’s creative assets in real time, the tool aims to help leaders make smarter, faster investment decisions. The goal is to democratize access to data, especially around arts and culture, and build a shared tool that could be a game changer for Indiana’s economic future. Pattern supported the initial development, but in order to create a truly useful tool—one that utilizes not only a variety of different datasets but also agentic AI—we’ll need partners from all corners to make it happen.