EXHIBITED STUDIOS
RMIT’s 2nd & 3rd year students are producing the exhibited work for PlayBack Media Festival, the following are descriptions of the exhibited studios that the work will be produced within.
BEYOND A JOKE, BEYOND A GENRE
Exploring the anatomy of comedy, with possible topics to include theories of humour, the comic frame, jokes, parody, satire, black comedy, anti-comedy, and post-comedy. Students have developed creative artefacts that explore comedy in and across media of their choosing.
Studio Leader - Bradley J. Dixon Bradley teaches and researches in media and cinema studies at RMIT, with a particular interest in comedy practice, persona, and performance.
CONSTRAINTS AS CREATIVE FUEL
Delving into the world of constraint-based media making. The media makers explore how limitation can serve as catalyst for expanding creative potential. By working within specific parameters, the creators have explored ways to think creatively and push beyond traditional boundaries. Challenge their assumptions about what is possible within a given set of limitations and thinking creatively under pressure and to innovate by necessity.
Studio Leader - Sebastian Bertoli Sebastian is a freelance creative. He works as a director, actor and sessional tutor. He is a 2017 Masters (Film & Television) graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts.
READY CAMERA ONE
Exploring the creative possibilities and challenges of multi-camera production in a studio environment. Through a combination of ‘live to tape’ and non-live production exercises, Students have learnt how to navigate the multi-camera environment, gaining an understanding of studio production workflows and technologies. Creating projects that emulate news, chat shows, and game show production.
Studio Leader - Dr Ruth Richards Ruth completed her PhD in Media and Communication at RMIT University in 2019. Her thesis explored the intersections of animation and feminist theory of the body.
RECOLLECTING, RETHINKING, REMAKING
Using diverse media forms and technologies to creatively adapt artefacts from the Crawford Collection. Media makers have utilised an episode script from Skyways, Homicide, The Henderson Kids or The Sullivans to prompt a media piece for contemporary audiences. Applying adaptation theory, the creators will use a range of genres, considering the history of Australian television genres, and contemplate the importance of resonance with audiences when adapting texts from the past.
Studio Leader - Hannah Braiser Hannah is a teacher, researcher and media practitioner interested in how noticing can be used to engage with the world ecologically. Her films combine the everyday, travel, landscape and environment to create ecologically conscious media.
ROOM WITH A VIEW
In Australia, community radio plays an important role in cultural life, providing a voice for communities that are not adequately serviced by other broadcasting sectors. Working in the Triple R radio studios, media makers have produced a “as-live” pre-recorded radio show.
Studio Leader - Jacinta Parson Jacinta Parsons has been working in radio broadcast for nearly 20 years. She is a current broadcaster on ABC Radio Melbourne, co-hosting the Friday Revue with Brian Nankervis and hosting Saturday Morning breakfast.
THE WRITER’S ROOM
Collaborating in a simulated writer’s room, media makers founding bones of our TV narrative will exploring genres such as comedy, horror, sci-fi, thriller, will fund the “story DNA” - character, goal, conflict, stakes, in order to thrill, create laughs, shock, or provoke dystopian fear amongst the audience.
Studio Leader - Lucy Coleman Lucy Coleman is an award-winning screenwriter and director. Her TV series EXPOSURE (creator and sole-writer) premiered on STAN in 2024 and is nominated for seven AACTA Awards.
ZEPHYR
Media makers have created a docuseries profiling Melbourne's diverse creative community, with unscripted, documentary-style conversations filmed in creatives' studios or site-specific locations. These intimate portraits will spotlight various young practitioners' philosophies, practices, and works, from the well-known to the emerging, across multiple disciplines, including visual art, writing, poetry, music, dance, filmmaking, architecture, and more.
Studio Leader - Dr. Seth Keen Dr. Seth Keen is a Lecturer and Internship Coordinator in the RMIT Media Program. Seth has decades of experience in Screen Production and is committed to industry connections and the career development of students.
EXPLORING AUDIO NARRATIVES
Exploring every step of creating a short film, media makers have taken roles in directing, scriptwriting, editing, performing, cinematography and other areas of filmmaking. They have mastered essential cinematography skills, learning the perfect moments to frame shots and move the camera for maximum impact.
Studio Leader - Hamid Taheri Hamid Taheri is an award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker with fourteen years of experience. His name appears in several aired TV shows and short and feature films.
FROM CONCEPT TO CUT
Podcasts and audio narratives are an accessible, powerful, and broad-reaching platform for telling your stories. Podcasts can be, and most likely have been, successfully used to bring similar stories to a global audience. Exploring the craft and context of audio narratives, media makers have created an audio narrative (in fiction, nonfiction, and/or anything experimental, beyond and between).
Studio Leader - Eugene Yang Eugene Yang is a writer, journalist, educator, and audio-maker based in Wurundjeri Country, interested in diasporic experience and de-assimilation. Eugene has produced audio stories ABC Radio Pacific and All the Best, and worked as a Producer and Editorial Director at Litmus Media.
hYpermedia_3000
In an age of generative AI, high-definition streaming, and content shaped by platforms, hypermedia_3000 intentionally steps back to explore what lies beyond the digital frontier. Media makers experiment with locative and mixed media, live performance, streaming, and documentary storytelling rooted in craft and authenticity. They create story experiences that cross digital and physical boundaries, engaging audiences through multiple senses and spaces. By blending traditional craft and place-based media with mindful use of technology, they build worlds that feel both familiar and strange—stories born from the margins where the wired and unwired worlds meet.
Studio Leader - Daniel Binns Daniel Binns is a tinkerer-theorist exploring technology's impact on storytelling and media cultures. Daniel has directed and produced network TV, and his film works have featured in over 20 festivals and streaming platforms.
LONG LIVE AUSTRALIAN CINEMA
Following research on Australian films including classics like ‘Priscilla Queen of the Desert’ and ‘Crocodile Dundee’, to contemporary classics such as ‘The Babadook’, ‘Samson and Delilah’, ‘The Dry’, and ‘Talk to Me’ . The media makers have formed bold ideas on how the landscape for Australian feature film distribution, marketing and release might change for the better, as well as delving into the idea of ‘the future’ of Australian narratives in film through a collaborative short-form creative project.
Studio Leader - Timothy Despina Marshall In 2013, Timothy's short film Gorilla won the Iris Prize in the UK, the world's largest LGBTQIA+ short film prize, awarding him £25K to make his next short film. Timothy earned a nomination for Best Director (Film Budget under $1.5M) for In The Room Where He Waits at the Australian Director's Guild Awards.
GOLDEN AGE CINEMA
Exploring peak filmmaking involves mastering techniques to create elite, visually engaging short films. By combining traditional cinema methods with modern cloud-based tools and apps, media makers can craft compelling narratives within a condensed timeframe.
Studio Leader - Cat Lew Cat Lew is a Video Artist, Sound Designer, Audio Engineer and Educator. She currently teaches digital media, film & sound editing and design at VU Polytechnic, the Australian Centre for the Moving Image and RMIT.
TOGETHER IN ELECTRIC DREAMS
Exploring the frontiers of AI and human interaction, particularly in media creation—filmmaking, music production, and scriptwriting—reveals how AI can influence personal relationships and creative expression. Media makers have investigated and speculated on its impact, leading to innovative projects such as short films, live performances, music videos, interactive installations, chatbots, and entirely new formats
Studio Leaders - Joel Stern and Alan Nguyen Joel Stern is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the School of Media and Communication at RMIT, and an Associate Editor at Disclaimer journal. His current work focuses on ‘machine listening’ and the relationship between sound and the politics of automation and AI.
Alan Nguyen is an international-award-winning filmmaker, artist and designer. He writes for TV and streaming live performance and works with new emerging technologies such as Al and XR.
MAKING MEMORY ANd PLACE: MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
In this Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) partnered studio, media makers have produced short media and audio pieces that interview MIFF audiences and volunteers. The interviews investigated the role of film festivals in community and culture.
Studio Leader - Lucie McMahon Lucie McMahon (she/her) is a film practitioner based in Melbourne. Lucie is currently working at The Australian International Documentary Conference (AIDC) and undertaking a PhD at RMIT University.