AustLit

'Within Australian universities, doctoral research in screen production is growing significantly. Two recent studies have documented both the scale of this research and inconsistencies in the requirements of the degree. These institutional variations, combined with a lack of clarity around appropriate methodologies for academic research through film and television practice, create challenges for students, supervisors, examiners and the overall development of the discipline. This paper will examine five recent doctorates in screen production practice at five different Australian universities. It will look at the nature of the films made, the research questions the candidates were investigating, the new knowledge claims that were produced and the subsequent impact of the research. The various methodologies used will be given particular attention because they help define the nature of the research where film production is a primary research method.' (Publication abstract)

'This article traces the history of how documentary filmmaking has been treated as research in the Australian University system of the last 25 years. Indicative case studies are key to its methodology, of both the author's documentary filmmaking and also that of several colleagues who have combined this creative practice with full-time employment in universities.' (Publication abstract)

'This paper discusses the role of film schools and government funding initiatives on the gender imbalance between male and female directors in the Australian film industry in the years 1970–2015. It traces the career trajectories of some of the first women graduates of the Australian Film Television and Radio School, such as Gillian Armstrong, Jane Campion and Jocelyn Moorhouse, who negotiated the pathways of government film financing to the commercial film industry. The exploration notes that a change in film school curricula, the rise of new film programmes within public universities, and reduced government funding impacted on the profile of female filmmakers in Australia during the 1990s to early 2000s. However, a bias towards male directors on bigger budget films and the perennial challenge of balancing a career and motherhood continue to prevail in the Australian film industry. The researcher looks at possible avenues of redress, calling on the education sector, the film industry and film bodies to provide support for women directors traversing the complex social capital required to succeed in the commercial film industry.' (Publication abstract)

'Sonic and visual information bounce off each other in daily and fictional lives; physical perception and imagination are intrinsic in the creation of immersive experiences. In the case of atmospheric cinema sound, for example, individual sensibility and physical relationships to sound and space are central to modelling a narrative’s perceptual and emotional authenticity. Is this experiential process compromised when film-making practice is lead by visual storytelling? I would argue that current and future cinema sound practitioners have the propensity to expand sonic phenomenological experience of creative collaborators and audiences alike. A more generalised application to synergetic creative process could originate within the cinematic industry itself. Of course some film directors are renowned for their holistic and collaborative approach to sound creation. Nevertheless sound professionals’ multisensory imagination should be encouraged, from the onset of their professional careers, with as much diligence as their acquisition of technical expertise. In order to highlight the impact of individual imagination on audio-visual creative collaboration, the author of this article devised a creative process involving the altruistic participation of Australian-based cinema professionals. The readers of this article will be invited to experience part of this specific creative process and audio-visually imagine a scene from the reading of a script.' (Publication summary)

'Look about. From big cities to rural centres, tourist towns to sheep farms, film festivals are everywhere. Hardly a weekend now passes without some celebration lighting up screens somewhere around Australia. While 2015 marks yet another bumper year of film festival offerings, the proliferation of festivals is not a new phenomenon. For going on three decades, Australia has experienced an exponential increase in the range and number of celebrations on offer, with the boom in events showing no sign of slowing in the near future. Despite what is arguably a surplus of events, however, Australian audiences seem not to have tired (yet) of the opportunities film festivals present. While traditional networks of film exhibition and distribution are in a state of flux, struggling to navigate an ever-expanding array of content delivery and consumption platforms that are disrupting established patterns of viewing and the money-streams attached to them, festivals seem to have retained the public's interest. As digital distribution channels, online content providers and media on demand technologies open new avenues for film lovers to access the titles they desire, festivals seem to have maintained their allure, continuing to entice audiences away from their personal screens and into more communal viewing experiences.' (Publication abstract)