MYRTLEFORD’S annual La Fiera Italian Festival is being backed by the Victorian government.

Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events, Steve Dimopoulos, last week confirmed the popular annual festival was among 22 community events around the state to receive funding in the latest round of the government's Regional Events Fund (REF).

Minister Dimopoulos said while individual grant amounts are confidential, community events can receive up to $50,000 to help draw visitors to regional areas.

“The Regional Events Fund brings thousands of visitors to local communities, providing a huge boost for businesses and showcasing some of Victoria’s most incredible destinations,” he said.

The funding boost comes as final preparations for the festival - to be staged from May 15 to 19 - are underway, hoping to see delight thousands of attendees at some of the festival’s iconic gatherings.

"All the planning for this year’s La Fiera is going very well,” festival committee member, John Reynolds-Smith said.

"Our premium table bookings have now all been sold out, as well as the tickets to James Liotta’s comedy show; ‘Mamma’s Still Not Happy’.

"All the food vans have been arranged, the marquees, the wine vendors; and the Myrtleford Film Society are also putting on a Saturday night screening at the EMPAC theatre: ‘Un Mondo Aparte’; (A World Apart), an Italian comedy drama which includes subtitles.

“It costs us roughly $80,000 approximately to put on the festival each year.

"After lockdowns, the committee realised if we were going to continue on with the festival, it had to transform, even partially, into a ticketed event.

"It's taken a lot of work to get to this stage, of course, and finding enough volunteer numbers is not an easy hurdle to conquer.

"If anyone would like to volunteer for a few hours to help us out, they can have free entrance the event for the rest of the day.”

One of the La Fiera’s committee’s aims is to make this year's festival a sustainable event: all the food vendors must use compostable temporary plates, glasses and so on to reduce waste.

For more information about this year’s La Fiera Italian Festival, visit: https://lafiera.com.au/