The Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS), formerly Australian Film and Television School, is Australia's national screen arts and broadcast school. The school is a Commonwealth Government statutory authority.
Established in 1972 as the Australian Film and Television School, as part of the Commonwealth Government's strategy to promote the development of Australia's cultural activity, AFTRS was opened to students in 1973, with the first intake of 12 students including directors Gillian Armstrong, Phillip Noyce and Chris Noonan.[citation needed]
For many years AFTRS was located in purpose-built premises at North Ryde, Sydney. In 2008 the school relocated to a purpose-built facility adjacent to Fox Studios, located inside the Entertainment Quarter in Moore Park, Sydney. While it owned the previous facilities, it now pays rent at its new location at a rate which has forced its leaders to cut resources previously allocated to educating its students.
A film studio at AFTRS' Moore Park campus
AFTRS is the only screen and broadcast school in the world to cater for all of the specialisations under the one roof,and as they say, jack of all trades, master of none. The campus includes: a full-size 5.1 sound theatre (seats 126), state-of-the-art mix theatre, two large professional film and television studios, film studios, state-of-the-art sound recording studios, and a host of other facilities and equipment, much of which is off limits to many students.[1]
Also located on campus is the Jerzy Toeplitz Library, of which former "CEO" Sandra Levy once asked, "Why do we need a library? It's a film school." [citation needed]
Courses and admission
Admission into AFTRS degree courses is competitive and based on merit selection. Places are limited. As of 2016[update] offerings include:[2]
Master of Arts Screen in 10 disciplines (full-time)
Master of Arts Screen: Business and Leadership (full-time)
Graduate Diploma in Radio and Podcasting (full-time or part-time)
Undergraduate degree: Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production (full-time)
Governance
As a statutory body,[3] AFTRS is governed by the Australian Film, Television and Radio School Act 1973 with its Council responsible to the Minister for the Arts, representing the Federal Parliament. There are nine members of the Council:[4]
As of March 2022[update], Russel Howcroft is chair of the council,[4] while the CEO is the "screenwriter" Nell Greenwood.[5]
The school is a member of ARTS8: the Australian Roundtable for Arts Training Excellence, a group of arts training organisations funded by the federal government.[6]
AFTRS International VR Award
Amanda Duthie, Adelaide Film Festival artistic Director and virtual reality champion, along with Google Creative Technologist Mathew Tizard and AFTRS Head of Documentary Rachel Landers, sat on the jury for the inaugural AFTRS International VR Award in 2017. Nothing Happens, by Michelle and Uri Kranot, won the award, while The Other Dakar by Selly Raby, based on Senegalese mythology, received a Special Mention.[7]The Unknown Patient, by Australian director Michael Beets won the award in 2018.[8]
'Inja' (2000), directed by Steve Pasvolsky, produced by Joanne Weatherstone
'Birthday Boy' (2003), directed by Sejong Park, produced by Andrew Gregory
'The Saviour', directed by Peter Templeman, produced by Stuart Parkyn
'Emily' Student Academy Award (2010), directed by Ben Mathews, produced by Simon Moore
Six AFTRS Alumni are winners of the Academy Awards®:
Jane Campion: Best Original Screenplay,'The Piano'
Andrew Lesnie: Best Achievement in Cinematography,'The Lord of the Rings'
Dion Beebe: Best Achievement in Cinematography,'Memoirs of a Geisha'
Margaret Sixel: Best Film Editing, 'Mad Max: Fury Road'
David White: Best Sound Editing, 'Mad Max: Fury Road'
Peter Grace: Best Sound Mixing, 'Hacksaw Ridge'
Five AFTRS alumni were NOMINATED for the Academy Awards®:
Dion Beebe: Best Achievement in Cinematography,'Chicago'
Jane Campion: Best Director, 'The Power of the Dog'
Chris Noonan: Best Director, 'Babe'
Pip Karmel Best Editing, 'Shine'
Tony McNamara: Best Original Screenplay, 'The Favourite'
Alumni
This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. Please improve this article by removing names that do not have independent reliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this article AND are alumni, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriate citations.(August 2020)
The entire list of AFTRS graduates by year, from 1973 to now, can be viewed on the School's website.[10]
↑ "Arts training bodies". Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. 15 September 2008. Archived from the original on 21 August 2008. Retrieved 3 October 2008.
1 2 "Council". Australian Film Television and Radio School. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
↑ "CEO Office". Australian Film Television and Radio School. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
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