A message from our CEO, Dr. Nell Greenwood:
Looking back over the year, I’ve been struck by the power of the incredible creative community we have here at AFTRS – thanks to your support. Whether you’re an Oscar winning alum, a valued industry partner, or heading into your first year of the BA, our School community is bound by this active engagement in how the world works and how we best capture its strange, beautiful working, whether on screen, on the page, through a score or through a podcast.
We’re also bound by a belief that becoming a great storyteller is something you can learn and continue to learn throughout your creative life – and that this learning can have a tremendous impact. As Minister Burke said to our 158 graduating students this year, “You, with the training you now have, are some of the best-equipped people in this nation to make sure Australia knows itself.”
And one of the highlights of the year was the progress we’ve made in increasing the School’s reach so the opportunity to learn at AFTRS is available to talent across Australia. Like the Master of Arts Screen: Business, our Graduate Diploma in Radio and Podcasting is now offered part-time and full-time, with options for students to study remotely. Two-thirds of GDRP students are now based outside of Sydney, and we have students studying in Bega and Grafton (NSW), Launceston (TAS), Townsville (QLD), and “just outside Bunbury” (WA). Regional students can choose to intern with local radio stations in their community, allowing them to seize employment opportunities where they live. Our partnership with TAFE NSW came to fruition this year and we welcomed the first TAFE graduates of the Diploma of Screen and Media into Year 2 of the Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production.
This year, we were also able to offer industry-partnered training in every state and territory. 2,300 participants were trained in-person on-campus, offsite, as well as online, across over 230 course deliveries from Short Courses, Industry Partnered Training and AFTRS for Business. Our focus in 2024 was on below-the-line roles to address skills shortages and grow and connect talent pipelines across the country.
2024 was also all about the hands-on learning that is at the heart of AFTRS. AFTRS students produced 230 films this year that contributed to 126 festival selections worldwide in 2024, while radio and podcasting students pitched 78 audio series and published 730 audio stories.
And, of course, sustainability remained front of mind for us. We were extremely grateful to the government for additional ongoing appropriations that will allow us to continue to grow and thrive into the future. We also continued our work, thinking about what it means for us to be a sustainable creative community, creating a future full of possibilities for innovation and connection. Your engagement allows our community to continually adapt to, anticipate and imagine this future – from the changing needs of screen and audio sectors to the changing world our future students will learn and thrive in. Thanks to your input, our Digital Futures Summit this year allowed us to scan the creative horizon to reflect on the fast-shifting impacts of AI. Over 1,600 colleagues from industry, government and education nationwide joined us for online panels on creativity, pedagogy, ethics and inclusion in the emerging age of AI and the white paper, the outcome of these rich discussions, can be found here.
So thank you again for your support – whether it’s coming along to an event, signing up for a course, participating in a panel or returning as an alum to share your experiences with our students. With your support, I look forward to another year of creative excellence, exploration and learning.
From all of us at AFTRS, we wish you all the best for a restful and festive holiday season.