🎅 Sydney Mini 2026 – Dates + Organisation

[Skymaster]

Hi everyone,


The Sydney Mini is returning in 2026

Thanks to the continued support of Woolworths, who have once again generously assisted with our venue requirements, we’ve been offered several potential weekend dates.

We now need to choose the one that works best for the community.

🗳 Vote – Poll Closes Friday 6th March​

Available weekend options:

• May 30–31
• July 4–5
• July 11–12
• July 18–19

There is a poll attached to this thread. Please vote before Friday 6th March.
I’ll combine the results from ACL and Facebook to determine the preferred date and confirm the booking.


If you’re even considering attending, please vote — it helps ensure we pick the most accessible weekend.

2026 – Broadening the Organising Team​

Over the years, many people have contributed to making the Sydney mini what it is — presenting, running sessions, managing logistics, helping with setup, and keeping everything moving behind the scenes.
In 2026, due to work schedule commitments, I won’t be able to take the same lead role as previous years.
So rather than scaling anything back, the plan is to formalise a small organising group early and distribute responsibilities properly from the start.

The mini has always worked best when:

• Responsibilities are shared
• Strengths are leveraged
• Decisions are collaborative
• The event is built for attendees

---

What Happens After the Vote?​

1. Poll closes Friday 6th March
2. Date is locked in with the venue
3. Kickoff planning meeting scheduled
4. Roles and responsibilities allocated

Areas we’ll likely need covered:

• Program & schedule planning
• Presenter coordination
• Sponsorship liaison
• Registration & communications
• On-the-day logistics

No prior organising experience required — just reliability and willingness to contribute.


The Sydney mini continues because the community chooses to make it happen.

Vote for your preferred date
Put your hand up if you’re willing to help.
Let’s build 2026 together.


Cheers
Mike

 

[Indigogyre]

I think July 4th would be an awesome day to celebrate a Mini! I'll be celebrating something else that day and will not be able to attend.

Edit:
P.S. I did not actually vote.

 

[Skymaster]

Ok, so the votes are in - with the winner being the weekend of 4/5 July.
This has been communicated to Woolworths who are in the process of locking the dates in - they had already tentatively parked these weekends for us.

Shortly I'll tee off a kickoff organisational meeting which will be communicated in due course. As mentioned above; we will need the community to lend a hand to ensure that this is a fantastic mini.

Date	ACL Votes	Facebook Votes	Total Count
30/31 May	3	1	4
4/5 July	4	9	13
11/12 July	3	0	3
18/19 July	6	5	11

 

[i13]

Last year's Sydney Mini revealed that very few of us are happy with our own xLights sequences. I am therefore offering to share my sequences from the years 2016-2020, 2022 and 2023 at the 2026 Mini. If you'd like to have them, bring a USB storage device plus a way to legitimately buy the songs (e.g. a device with iTunes) and I'll give you the sequences. If you want to know more, I'm happy to be contacted with a direct message.

Some videos: https://auschristmaslighting.com/threads/9545/

 

[Juddge]

any chance of just a google drive for access ?

 

[Skymaster]

Shortly I'll tee off a kickoff organisational meeting which will be communicated in due course. As mentioned above; we will need the community to lend a hand to ensure that this is a fantastic mini.

Hi all,

A quick but important update following the date selection.
The venue is now locked in for July 4–5, thanks again to the support of Woolworths.

However, I need to be upfront with an apology:
Due to current commitments, I don’t have the capacity this year to lead the organisation of the mini — including planning, coordination, scheduling, and driving meetings, which is why I am putting out this call for help.

At this point:

• The venue is secured
• But no catering, schedule, sessions, sponsorship or logistics have been organised

What This Means​

For the mini to go ahead in 2026, we need someone to step up and take the lead organiser role.
Without a lead to coordinate things, the event won’t be able to proceed.

You won’t be starting from scratch.
I’m happy to:

• Hand over all planning information from last year.
• Provide guidance on what needs to happen
• Assist with venue liaison if required
• Support in the background where time allows

There are also plenty of people in the community who have helped in previous years and can contribute — but someone needs to coordinate and drive it.

What the Lead Role Involves (High Level)​

• Coordinating a small organising group
• Running/planning a few key meetings
• Driving timelines (program, catering, comms, etc.)
• Keeping everything moving forward

This is not a solo effort — but it does need a central point of coordination.

The Sydney mini has always been a strong community event — but it only happens if someone is able to lead the coordination.
If you’re willing to take this on (or even want to discuss what’s involved), please reply here or message me directly as soon as possible.

— Michael