Firstly, my dissatisfaction with an advertising career that had started to fall victim to ageist attitudes. I was not interested in moving into management, was probably not suited to it temperamentally. Also I was always looking out the window at the weather and wondering what was happening on the coast. When I found myself looking online about what do older art directors do I knew something had to give.

At the back of my mind had been a film idea that needed some unusual sound design, so I decided to attempt contact with Richard Tognetti of the Australian Chamber Orchestra. A long email led to a call from him an hour or so later and this led to another conversation in person a month later, which led to me writing a brief treatment for a doco that became Musica Surfica.

The name Musica Surfica was actually coined by a friend and surfing buddy of Richard’s called Derek Hynd. Derek is a freak of nature in many ways, not least in his ability on a surfboard that exists in a region thirty years younger than his chronological age of 55. Extraordinary.

We made the film, won a lot of awards, did a small concert tour and most importantly forged relationships. The director of water photography on Musica was Jon Frank, who, mark my word, will be recognised as a truly great artist as the years go by. His work had caught my eye years before in a project he did called Litmus. He didn’t disappoint in Musica and his artistic sensibilities also caught the eye of Richart Tognetti. Their relationship grew with a couple of image and music collaborations in The Glide, and The Crowd, both highly successful and very beautiful.

Fast forward a couple of years ago and I was offered the chance to work with them again on The Reef.

What was your creative approach to the project?

My creative approach was to try and find a way to bring an idea to something that could not be scripted formally, as all it was to be was taking our same tight group of surfers, from Musica Surfica, with one notable exception, and go surfing a very remote and forbidding surf spot called Gnaraloo, in the far north west of Western Australia.

The solution was to attempt to compress that three odd weeks into one day, a Mythic Day. Later I decided to add the layer that this day could be an analogy for our lives, birth to death, and all that we experience in between.

A shooting list and a shooting philosophy of looking past the obvious began to produce magic in Jon’s hands.

This gave us a spine to build ideas on, even though the image palette we worked with comprised solely images of surfing, the sea and the inland of The Gnaraloo Station.

Of all the coastline in Australia, what is it about the Gnaraloo Reef that thrills you particularly?

It is so tough and unforgiving. The inland is glass hard, prickly and you gather cuts like a shaggy dog does burrs. The same applies in the water. Coral reef, sea urchins, ridiculously powerful waves and a lot of sharks. It is not a place for a novice surfer, or even a good surfer lacking in confidence once it gets much past head high. It is a bonecrushing wonder of the world.

 How did the process of combining the music with the video work?

The analogy I would draw is like painting with music and ‘film’. There were certain premises that I had written in the treatment, for example, the beginning being underwater and the harsh inland featuring at the middle of the day. What we did with the ants and the surfers themselves is an idea that came to me when thinking how we treat the accompaniment to one of the musical pieces, Seeger’s Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

Beyond that we had a set of musical pieces we had chosen from a larger group gathered by Richard, Jon and I, with Richard naturally providing the lion’s share of choices given his prodigious musical knowledge. This 21 odd piece set was ordered to fit the mood chronology of our day and once in the ‘edit suite’ (our laptops wherever we had them) Jon and I set to creating the various sections. Some fell together very organically while others needed a lot of work.

For me these pieces became symbolic of life in a very real way, but with a twist. Every surfing movie has a wipeout sequence. I decided to use ours as a homage to heroic failure. The act of failing, getting up and giving it another crack. And simply not stopping.

Did you face any challenges on the way to the finished project?

Many. The idea, the logistics, the distance, the OH&S load, a huge amount of contractual and budget sorting stuff that really did my head in at times.

The solution was finding great people and trusting them. The production team was epic. The relationships are strong and respectful, and to be honest I pinch myself at times to find myself with such a wonderful talents as working partners. It can get a little fractious at times, but only a little, and the end result of that tension is always an improvement.

Whilst your surfing expertise is evident, what’s your creative background like?

I was an art director and writer (I could never truly separate), and still am. I started as one in about 1980, having previously worked as an illustrator and designer. I suppose you’d call me relatively old school in that I could draw, storyboard, mark up type and layout traditionally pre computer and had a lot of TV experience gathered when budgets were big and the chance to work with directors of stature was a little easier. I’d worked with and watched top flight DOP’s, and you gather a lot osmotically. This tends to sit there and it helped years later.

I was also one of the first creatives I know of to get into computers so have developed a very broad skill set that began its days in the late eighties.

It’s clear from your blog that you dabble in lots of different media-  photography, painting, sketching, writing – have you got any more project ideas lined up?

Dabble is right but it is all exploration. I can’t stop thinking, dreaming, having stuff pop into my head. Most of the people reading this are the same and most likely far more talented than me if what I see on The Loop is any indication.

Life pressures get in the way, doing this stuff has placed enormous burdens on my family, but I do hope this late journey into the ‘what if’ as opposed to ‘the safe’ will pay dividends.

As far as future projects are concerned there are probably three or four that are most immediate.

1. The Reef as a feature film has just received support from Screen West. We need to raise more finance but all in all that is looking good.

2. I am working towards launching a magazine later in the year, the theme being a quarterly journal about living near the sea. Not a surf magazine. Just very good writing, art, photography and thinking and with an approach tempered by the smell of the sea. My partners are epic, complimentary, good people, and I believe it will be something wonderful. Think the New Yorker for the coast. You don’t have to live there to want to read it.

3. A coming of age screenplay that is half finished, inspired by my youngest son. His errant and chaotic path towards manhood keeps me holding back on attempting to finish it as it keeps providing so much fresh and alarming material.

I’ve lost a lot of hair and gone grey watching the journey.

4. Plus I’ve begun designing three books (a commission) on aspects of Indigenous Australian life that I’m absolutely loving.

On top of that I’m back hunting bread, butter and other creative work as I need to feed the family.

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How did you come across the ‘Create STUDIO’ competition?

I’d just recently created a Loop profile. I think the Create STUDIO competition was one of the first notifications I received.

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How did the concept for your brandspot come about? Did you spend a long time brainstorming or did you have an instinct for what you wanted to create quite immediately?

I’ve always wanted to create a piece of work that demonstrates the process of animation, probably because as animators we feel the audience may not be aware of the life force sapping process involved in creating a few seconds of footage! The Create STUDIO brief emphasised highlighting the artist at work, so it seemed like a potentially great marriage.

Why did you choose this particular approach to the brief? What is your creative background?

Although it was an idea I’d had for some time prior to looking at the brief, I really made an effort to make it work for the STUDIO identity (which I researched before addressing the brief) and the other constraints of the brief. It certainly became more about capturing the STUDIO brand rather than me having a whinge as an animator! I’ve worked for a diverse bunch of clients so that’s taught me the importance of presuming nothing and interpreting a brief with a fresh perspective each time.  I guess I think a good response to a brief requires a balance of creativity and consideration for the client’s needs.

How did it compare/contrast to the other finalist’s entries?

I thought all the concepts of the other finalists were fantastic, and when Warren (the project’s producer) first described them to me I could immediately see them all working perfectly as a STUDIO brand spot. The exciting thing was seeing how the concepts were realised. They turned out very different to each other, which is also great for the STUDIO brand, but strong concepts tie them together and make the pieces work as a set.

What was it like working with STUDIO to make your vision a reality?

When I first pitched my idea I didn’t really think STUDIO would be interested because of the logistics involved in creating 30 seconds of animation in such a short time. However it became clear that for them “concept” came first, so they were happy to get on board for the hectic ride.

How did you achieve the final brand spot? What techniques did you use?

Once the space was set up, (which was a huge factor in determining the success of this particular project) it was just me animating in a dark basement. I didn’t have to do much with the edit, as with animation all the shots are usually refined before the shoot starts. The technique is called “paint on glass” animation. There’s some amazing paint on glass animation out there, Google it! I normally describe it as stop motion animation, but instead of using more familiar materials, such as, clay or plasticine, the animator moves paint around on a glass pane.

Did you face any challenges along the way?

Many. Too many to go into, but I guess the biggest one was the studio getting burgled with a day of shooting to go! They stole cameras, lenses, a laptop and a bunch of other equipment, but kindly left the computer and backup hard drive with all my footage on it, so thanks guys.

Have you ever worked on a television project before?

I’ve done some animation for television projects before, but certainly not in a capacity where my work is the focus of the project.

What has your career path been up until now?

I actually studied Industrial Design at Uni, but I’ve spent the last 5 or so years working as a freelance designer/illustrator/animator. More recently I’ve tried to bring a bit more focus into what I do. I’ve decided I’d rather do a couple of things well than be average at everything.

Who and what inspires you?

That’s a tough one. I don’t think about things like that until someone asks me! Great ideas inspire me. 
As I get older I seem to be more inspired by people who have mastered their craft, where you can see all the years, refinement and skill in the beauty of their work.

How will you spend your $10,000 prize money?

Most of it was spent in Sydney on Wednesday night after the announcement party! I guess I’ll spend the remainder paying off my credit card… In all seriousness that money is great. There is some equipment I’d love to get, which I can now. It’s also just nice to have a financial buffer for a change.

We look forward to seeing more of your animation and illustration work on The Loop.

Click image to zoom in

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How did the concept behind the comic poster come about?

The Distillery, a specialty letterpress printer in Darlinghurst, Sydney, were putting together a fundraiser for Starlight Children’s Foundation. The show brings together artists, typographers, illustrators & designers to create a poster about a dear suburb in Sydney. I worked with my hometown, Cabramatta.

What attracted you to this project? Were you approached about doing it or vice versa?

I wanted to see how I could return to familiar subject matter from a new position in my life – with more distance, maturity and a kind of romantic homesickness.

The Distillery approached me with this project. I took a little tour of their letterpress HQ on my last visit home and was excited to be working with their team.

Was it a collaborative project? Who were you working alongside?

When I first moved to New York, I spent time getting to know Daryl Prondoso, his work and his ethic. Daryl became the Distillery’s senior designer and printmaker upon his return to Sydney and it was a great opportunity to work with him in a new medium that he was mastering. His experience and skills more than compensated for me working so remotely & my relative naiveté with letterpress printing.

What are the key features – both good and bad – when working with letterpressing?

My ink drawings are very calligraphic & can be awash with tonal variations pushing in & out of an image’s focus. It was a challenge to translate these subtle tones into the language of half tones for the letterpress. The line achievable by a letterpress was impressively fine, I had expected greater loss and accommodated for it in my original ink drawings. Daryl took my original high-resolution scans and found a balance with half tones so that it could translate easily.

How was the response to the project?

I was glad to have heard from other people from Cabramatta who considered it fondly and sent photos of the exhibition display. Being so far removed from its reception and the celebration of opening night, I really appreciated it! I’m glad people could identify with something that might have been misunderstood as evasive, disingenuous or even an affront by approaching something communal, and arguably mythologised, in a very specific and personal way.

 What is your career background? Have you always been a storyteller in one-way or another?

I studied Commerce and Law at the University of Sydney, I finished my Finance degree and dropped out when the Law degree came a little too close for comfort. I became an editor in publishing, before joining a commercial illustration studio and finally striking out on my own when I was offered representation from the Jacky Winter Agency.

I was making my own comics all the way through all my studies and jobs, which attracted my first illustration jobs. I loved story telling early on – there is a lot of problem and puzzle solving whenworking with fiction, which is as much a source of attraction as frustration for me.

Have you been particularly inspired by another illustrator, comic creator or studio?

I love Paul Pope’s work. I just met a young cartoonist named Connor Willumsen who is doing great work too. Marjane Satrapi, Rutu Modan, David B, Craig Thompson… And filmmaker, Andrei Tarkovsky, very much informs my own ethic. I’ve been given great guidance by designer/artist/powerhouse, James Victore.

Can you describe your typical working day?

No such thing! One of the rare consistent aspects of my days is a discipline and loyalty to the spirit of the work. It is important to ‘show up’, even if you never make it to the drawing desk or the studio. Show up not only physically (although that’s a good first step!) but ‘show up’ energetically, show up with the right spirit, with the right attitude and intention.

What advice would you give to someone embarking on a similar creative career path? 

1. Use how you like to feel – the rewarding way drawing or writing or singing or dancing makes you feel – as your guiding north star, it will make your choices clearer and your relationship to your work impervious to any other, external measure.

2. Occupy the verb, don’t chase the noun. Write, draw, sing, rather than chase what it means to be a ‘writer’, ‘drawer’, ‘singer’.

3. Get out of your own way. It’ll be hard for you to hear the answers to your own questions until you can occupy and engage your own fears and shortcomings, it’s ok to be bored! Be afraid! Be genuinely inadequate!

Can you draw your creative process for us?

Click the album cover to watch the music video

How did the concept behind the animated music video come about? 

The basic progression of events and idea for the story was written by Nathaniel Beard of The Beards, who is an amazing storyteller, not only in his songs, but also in short-films and other media. After this was agreed upon all four members of the band and I went to the St Peters Bakery in Adelaide. We came up with a huge list of gags for both the Beardland part of the story and also the ending. We also ate some good pasties. There were so many ridiculous ideas that didn’t quite make it. It would have been great to animate everything, but this curation of a few great ideas from many quite good ideas is hopefully testament to the thought that goes into a piece like this. During production the animation team added little gags and visual humour on top of what The Beards had written. This was unexpected and really appreciated as it took certain scenes to another level that exceeded our original vision.

I studied illustration, but have bounced between animation and illustration for the last ten years. My illustration is very character based, so even when I’m not animating much I’m hopefully giving things life. The odd animation project is always a revelation in how to better pose characters and get the best out of their personality, so I hope I get opportunities to do more. It makes me a better illustrator. I hadn’t directed and produced a music video for a long time before this one, especially with a team of other animators to order about, so it was a steep learning curve.

Was it a collaborative project? Who were you working alongside?

I’ve worked with band The Beards on almost all their visuals from their inception and we always work closely at the initial idea generating stage of the project. It’s some of the most fun collaboration I do as we all bring different things to the table, but ultimately have an appreciation for humour and get each other because we’ve known each other for so long. The animation team of Bill Northcott, Jarrod Prince, Lisa Vertudaches and Harry Plane were excellent to work with as well. I hadn’t spent a lot of time with any of them beforehand and just threw them all together, so fortunately they weren’t complete loonies. You spend a lot of time together during an animation project and I learned a lot from these guys.

I enjoy all the creative stuff, but it’s different being a producer with a team you’re responsible for. As an illustrator it’s usually just me working on my own, so things like small budgets and tight time schedules are easier to control and work around. I think if I did this project again I’d involve a super-project-director-manager-producer type. You know… those awesome people that smile and talk and drink all the coffee and do EVERYTHING in bigger studios and on bigger productions. Creatives often take for granted and undervalue these people until they’re not there, but they hold our industry together.

- Wake up to a phone call from someone who wants something.

- Eat breakfast and guzzle coffee in front of my computer if the phone call was something urgent. If it wasn’t, potter around the garden and eat breakfast normally while casually checking emails on my phone.

- Spend an hour or more checking emails and tending to important matters. If I have multiple projects on the go, it’s good to touch base with people, send drafts, ask questions early in the day so they have the day to respond with feedback and I’m not waiting with nothing to do.

- Eat lunch.

- Spend another six to eight hours writing emails and tending to unimportant matters.

- Get fed up and go shoot some basketball hoops outside.

- Eat dinner.

- Finally get to doing some drawing, but then get interrupted by some emails from someone in Europe who just got my email from earlier.

- Become productive and work hard all night. Get things done. Night time is great.

- Watch some ‘Adventure Time’

- Sleep a bit.

Firstly I would ask them how much they enjoy sleeping, going out, being wealthy and spending time with their loved ones. If the answer is “Those things aren’t so important to me” then I would say draw as much as possible and always be open to learn more, even when you think you’ve got something. You can keep getting better your whole life.

What is your favourite part of what you do?

Coming up with clever come-backs to “My three year old could draw better than that!”

Can you draw your creative process for us?

Take us back to the beginning…..How did the idea of CultureLabel.com come about and what makes it a unique proposition?

Our light bulb moment so to speak was a day Simon and I were having a coffee in the ICA (Institute of Contemporary Arts) in London. We spotted a limited edition work of art by an artist called Mark Leckey. He had just won the Turner Prize that week which is a really big deal in the UK so his name was all over the media. Yet this work was only around £150 and there were still quite a few available. We did some research and found that IKEA was one of the biggest sellers of art in the world and we thought that maybe a piece of poster art from them might be £50 but it was not a great deal more to buy something that was in our view more personal, authentic and collectable. The more we looked into it we also realised that organisations like the Tate, V&A and Design Museum were incredible curators of products. What the internet allowed us to do was to bring all of these things together in one place. It took about a year to develop and launch the concept so we have been live for nearly 3-years now.

What is your background and career path that led you to create this cultural initiative?

Both Simon and myself have a background of working in the cultural sector but also in business. It is the happy marriage of the two which is at the heart of CultureLabel and also Intelligent Naivety, a book we co-wrote which is a handbook for would-be Cultural Entrepreneurs. Before quitting my job to setup my own business I was a Director at a government arts agency that brokered sponsorships between the arts and leading companies. Making the case for why they should invest gave me a unique insight into just how fast cultural consumption was growing. For example, Tate Modern was originally built for 2 million people yet attracts 5 million annual visitors. The British Museum and The Metropolitan Museum in New York are both around the 6 million mark and The Louvre crams in nearly 9 million. One of the core attractions of most leading international cities is their cultural scene. The offer of CultureLabel connects with this massive audience which have embraced these live cultural experiences across museums, galleries, film, theatre and more.

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At the Far Edges of the Universe, Marc Quinn

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You now have over 20,000 products on the site but how do you source and choose new products?

Curation is incredibly important to our audience. They trust the brand to provide them with an edit of the best art and products from creative organisations and individuals across every continent. We have a lot of products but they all have common qualities; most importantly that each and every one has a unique and inspiring story. Consumers increasingly aspire for something more authentic and personal than the high street chains are able to offer them and this is what drives the team at CultureLabel when they identify art and products for the site. The partners that we identify are also part of the selection process. For example, the Design Museum are experts in their field and they are a partner of CultureLabel because we believe their product range reflects the level of curation we strive for in our collections on CultureLabel.

How often do artists create limited editions exclusive to CultureLabel? Do you approach the artist or do they approach you?

We are doing this more frequently now as both cross-cultural collaborations and the trend for bespoke and original goods increases.

In terms of approach, it works both ways. When major brands approach us for product development collaborations, such as Bestival and Amnesty International, we instantly look at our network of partners to see how we can engage them in the project. When creating the 50^th birthday collection for Amnesty International we engaged over 20 of our partners in an open pitch with Amnesty and ended up working with seven of them to deliver the range – including the contemporary artist Stuart Semple and contemporary ceramicists The New English.

Conversely, on announcing a new lifestyle collaboration with major UK music festival Bestival’s Josie Da Bank, many of our artists approached us to be involved so it’s a real two-way process and we see this is only going to develop further as grow this side of the business. That particular range saw our partners showcased in Selfridges’ Great British Bang summer collection with a rooftop launch party to boot!

Another route to commissioning is to use the audiences of CultureLabel and our partner organisations and this is why the internet can be so powerful as a creative tool. With Tate & Wallpaper* magazine we created RELEASE1.0 an online platform to crowd-source the very best new product designs from across the world for a new product for Tate Modern’s 10^th Anniversary. Not surprisingly we had thousands of people register their interest and hundreds of entries that were incredibly high quality (and we will be doing more of this in the future).

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Under the Waves print, Hokusai

Can individual artists sell their work on CultureLabel.com or do they need to be represented by a gallery or store?

Absolutely – we work with both individual artists and a selection of major art fairs and collectives such as The Other Art Fair, Free Range and the University of the Arts, London that support the best unsigned, graduate and undergraduate artists respectively. We are proud to be able to offer emerging talent an online platform to promote and sell their work to our highly engaged art-buying audiences, helping them to nurture their careers in the art world. There is so much new talent out there and our team is always so excited by the chance to pick out the next big thing. We have just partnered with the Royal College of Arts as well recently which is very exciting as they produce some of the best artists around.

Can Australian artists sell their work on the site and if so, how?

Yes, Australian artists can sell their work on the website and we already have nearly 100 Australian partners already onsite so they will be in good company. In fact the response to CultureLabel has been so great here we want to confirm to our Australian fans that CultureLabel will be officially launching Down Under in early 2013 which we are really excited about. We were asked to do a three week speaking tour by a number of national and state arts agencies in Australia earlier this year and the response from museums, galleries, artists and designers was amazing which made our minds up. Partners like QAGOMA and the Melbourne Museum will be joining us for the launch in 2013 so watch this space for more announcements shortly.

Liquid Darkside of the Moon, Storm Thorgerson

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At the moment CultureLabel just exists in the UK but do you have plans to take it global?

This follows on from my response to the last question and the answer is yes, because we believe passionately that more and more people want to live with great art & design and are moving beyond established brand names to something more unique. The website has been a huge success in the UK – and as a result, large amounts of positive global press coverage in publications like the Wall Street Journal and New York Times have already helped us build a large stable of international partners including major institutions in the US, Europe and Australia. We raised further investment from a leading technology Venture Capital firm earlier this year to take CultureLabel into the places where we already have a fast growing base of partners and audience. This is an exciting new phase for us growing the team rapidly but determined to stay true to the vision that made us want to create a start-up that would take cultural shopping to the world.

For more innovative arts-related organisations, go to theloop.com.au/companies

ARTBAR takes the gallery experience and flips it on its head through unique art, music, design and performances.

Guests are invited to drink, dare, discover and be driven wild with artistic excitement as each event is vastly different from the last.

“It’s art but not as you know it!”

Event organiser, Kym Lenoble, miraculously (& kindly) found some time to talk to us about the series…

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How did the idea of ARTBAR come about? And how did you get involved?

ARTBAR was conceived in a round of big picture planning that happened at the MCA a few years before I arrived.  Every now and then the MCA organises a staff get together to decide on the future of the organisation.  This is then put to the board and whatever sticks makes it through.  ARTBAR had a strong curatorial vision as well as a fresh approach created by curatorial here at the MCA.

Well, I have this big A3 run sheet, which does all the thinking for me.  I print it off the night before and place it around the building so anyone at anytime, anywhere throughout the day can see what is going on.  Once this is up, it’s like being a human pinball.  I bounce between levels, referring to that incredible list.  Once the building closes at 5, the AV team swoop in and transform the public spaces.  I begin talking at super human speed, and somehow at 7 we open.  The next 4 hours are a blur. The doors close as we convince our final guests to leave and then we pack up.  That’s the short version.

Each artist’s temperament is different.  Some are competitive, some internalised, some are inspired by AV works specifically, some obsessed with participation, some really into the music.  This is reflected in the vastly differing program each month.  We try to keep some elements as a common thread, but artists are encouraged to think big.

Being Tasered in the gallery.  I’m not even kidding.

We begin by meeting with the artist, approximately six weeks prior to their event and give them a formula to suggest how each space might be used. If they feel comfortable to discard this formula, that is also an option.  The event template is a guide, and each artist’s vision is celebrated by how they reimagine the space.

We look to our curatorial team to lead us towards artists who have been involved with the MCA in the past, at present or who are positioned for the future.

I think it’s between Eddie Sharps and Jess Olivieri.  For me, both were super engaging, and these artists both have a background in either programming or participatory art, so from a practical point of view it’s a lot of fun working alongside people who have experienced the highs and lows of a large scale event involving the public.

New formats, more artists, bigger hair?  I made that last one up.

More about the Artbar series here http://www.mca.com.au/series/artbar/

And to find other creative projects, go to http://www.theloop.com.au/portfolios

His second self-funded short film is called Broken Glass, which he both wrote and directed. It was accepted into six film festivals around the world and won Best Foreign Film at the Canada International Film Festival 2012.

Why did you come up with this particular idea? What was your inspiration or special insight?

When I set out I didn’t really say to myself “This is my subject and I HAVE to talk about it”. It grew from snippets I had bouncing around – I had always talked about these ideas with my mates and partner. At the time of writing I had a close friend give birth to a baby girl (who ended up in the movie) and I saw how hard it was for her to cope with her new found role as a mother and she was as well equipped as anyone. It made me think, if its hard for her, then what is it like for someone who has nothing and or no one, especially a young girl who has her whole life ahead of her. I remembered back to my high school and there were a few girls that had kids, they were aged 16/17, I thought back to that and it kind of grew from there.

Was this a collaborative project?

Making your own film is strange really, it starts off in your head, it’s close to you and personal, then suddenly it morphs into this beast and to get it done you need to collaborate with loads of people, from cast to crew, right through the whole process. From the first coffee to discuss it, through to post, I had lots of people collaborating with me to help me bring my vision to life. There were a few key people that really made it awesome for me though; producers Adam Franklin & Camille O’Dea did amazingly pulling everything together and helping me immensely. Creatively I worked very closely with Cinematographer, Earle Dresner, he was there all the way putting in the time effort and commitment throughout the whole ride, the man is a legend and a very talent dude too. Also the cast obviously had their input and threw stuff into the ring. Two other sidekicks were Jesse J McElroy, my editor, and Banjo Fitzsimon, the art director. As you can imagine, when it comes to editing you spend hours next to them, in the dark, talking rubbish, laughing loads, editing, ordering pizza, editing more, laughing, having some beers and then editing some more, so it’s important you get along and also important you challenge each other. Jesse did both. King Banjo, my art director, was another that busted his gut for the cause. He smashed it, didn’t stop working for days and pulled all sorts things out of the hat – the girls bedroom looked wicked. On the home front, my girl and best mate, Paris, was a great support as always. She helped with my mini meltdowns and up & down moods throughout the process. As well as that she also did the wardrobe, which she nailed.

What challenges did you face along the way?

What challenges didn’t I face more like it! With my first film (Charlie & Ginger) my lead actor took a fall down some stairs the night before the shoot and hurt his foot, he didn’t tell me and limped onto set. We ended up changing his role from standing at the chalkboard (he was a teacher) to sitting at his desk and shot it that way as it turned out he had broken his foot in three places!! Thankfully Broken Glass wasn’t as crazy as that one, but as with all self-funded independent works you always face many obstacles along the way – from the crew, locations, equipment right through to boring things like insurance and even food!

One evening we shot a certain scene and it was meant to be late afternoon, but by the time we wrapped it was dark. When we got to post we had some shots in the light and a few in the dark, so we had to pull a few tricks to cover that one.

Another hiccup was that unfortunately some of the on set sound recording didn’t turn out wonderfully, so we had to pull a few favours, get in a studio and do some ADR with the actors. That was fun but tough because we had to do it so quickly and also it was a challenge for some of the actors months to get back in the zone and re-create their performance months later for the new audio.

What advice would you give to someone embarking on a similar kind of project?

Go for gold but don’t over think it or work it – bigger isn’t always better (I’m learning this as I go!). Production value doesn’t mean shit if there’s no story there.

Can you share your key learnings with us?

I think in film you are always learning, the technical side is consistently changing in this digital world – there’s always new cameras, new programmes and so forth coming out. But on the creative side I am learning not to over cook it, maybe to strip the next one back a bit and don’t over work it. I think the beauty of film is you are always learning and evolving because it’s such a broad and interesting medium to take on. There’s no right or wrong there’s just good and bad.

What is your favourite thing about this project?

It’s what I want to do, I feel alive when directing. I could do it everyday for the rest of my life and I hope I do.

Can you draw your creative process for us?

The idea was to celebrate global diversity through a project that encompassed the whole world. This idea began with one person’s faith that the world is a beautiful blend of cultures and that this beauty can bring communities together. And today Danielle Lauren’s dream has become a reality.

Creative Director Danielle tells us more about how this unique not-for-profit initiative came about and what she hopes to achieve as a result.

1) Where did the idea for the 11Eleven Project come from? What was your inspiration?

I’m happy to say that the idea for the 11Eleven Project was born in a cinema – Luna Cinema in Perth – in 2000. I was sitting with a friend of mine watching back to back Godfrey Reggios experimental documentaries Koyaanisqatsi and Poqaqqatsi. They’re these super intense films with confronting images and sounds and in an almost pseudo meditative state – questions started to arise within my mind “what if everything I was watching was all filmed on the one day?” “what if it was the people themselves telling their story?” “what could we learn about humanity”. I remember leaving the cinema half way through the second film, grabbing a scrap piece of paper in the foyer and writing down “ A day in the life of the world told by the people of earth” and 12 years later that’s exactly what the 11Eleven Project has become.

2) How did you go about making your dream into a reality?

In 2002 when I was studying at the Australian Film Television and Radio School, I asked filmmakers across Australia to film their lives. Now this was a time prior to the world of Google, Youtube and people needed to record on digital tapes. When filmmakers submitted their content to me two things became clear. One – we would need A LOT of options to choose from in order to keep the audience entertained. Two – if you look for it, there is commonality between what seems sporadic. For example, without asking people to, most people filmed their bedrooms… I thought that was pretty special – a common link… it’s there if you look for it. Jump to 11/11/11 – with technological advancements and the ability for more people to easily express themselves – suddenly the world was ready for such a big idea.

I guess here are a few tip that I would give to other people wanting to turn a dream into a reality.

1. Believe in yourself.  I know this seems warm and fluffy, but if you don’t have the personal conviction to see something through you’re going to find it hard to stick to your vision.

2. Action. There’s no point having an idea stuck in your head and not actually doing anything with it. For a lot of people (including myself) there’s safety in just “imagining” this project you want to make…but if you don’t take the action to bring it to life then it’s simply just an idea

3. Find a team. Everyone needs help and there is nothing like being surrounded by people who want what you want – to turn the idea into a reality. Lack of resources if just an excuse – you will find passion to be an incredible driving force. We had over 200 volunteers working on the 11Eleven Project locally and internationally. All our Australian staff applied for work experience through The Loop and even though they weren’t being paid they were driven by something greater – the vision of the project. It’s so special to find people to share with. Collaboration is undoubtedly a key to success. Allowing everyone to bring their talents to the table can be a very strong force.

4. Have a laugh along the way. Sometimes we can get so caught up in the execution of a project we forget to have fun. Take time to enjoy the process. We do what we do because we love it and connecting with that is essential.

3) You have received submissions from 179 countries, which is an absolutely amazing achievement! How did you get the word out there?

Facebook, Twitter, Google, Blogs, The Loop, Google Translate, Word of Mouth and Email. We live in a world where if you want to you can connect with anyone. To be honest,  it’s not as simple as just throwing it up on the web and hoping people find it – you do have to keep putting energy into promoting it, but hopefully if people like what you do they’ll support it.

4) What do you hope to achieve as a result of this amazing project?

I personally have 2 major objectives.

1. To plant a seed of compassion. I sincerely hope that when we take the time to truly discover one another, we realise that we have a shared humanity that is worthwhile celebrating. I do believe we have a responsibility to one another. That wonderful sense of “community” needs to reinvigorated – where we take care of all people. It’s time to become proactive global citizens…and with technology at our hands there is no excuse.

2. To raise money for charity. We are donating our profits to some beautiful organisations – the World Wildlife Fund, Save the Children, Opportunity International, the Hunger Project, Global Voices and Catherine Hamlins’ Ethiopian Hospital. As this is a project about people and community we wanted to make sure we could practically and proactively support people and community. The more money we make – the better it is for our charity partners. We want to support their wonderful, inspiring work. Imagine if we could donate a million dollars or more to charity with this project – how incredible would that be?  I hope we can achieve that.

 5) What challenges did you face along the way?

Finding financial support and sponsorship has been so difficult. We have found wonderful in-kind partners, but getting people to put dollars on the table has been pretty much impossible. Our project was too “risky” and “outside the square” that it was difficult for business’s or funding/government bodies (except City of Sydney – thank you ) to invest in. What was worse, was sitting across from top business people – CEO’s and Managing Directors who not only wouldn’t invest but were very negative and patrionising about the whole project. “ Are you sure you want to do this, it seems impossible” “How cute – but isn’t it a waste of time?” “ It’s good to dream but don’t you think you need to be a bit realistic”?. This negative rhetoric is deflating for someone who is looking for words of wisdom and support. I believe business leaders have a responsibility to inspire and even if they don’t agree with the vision – giving someone a positive smile and a few good words makes a big difference.

6) What advice would you give to someone also wanting to affect global social change?

DO IT! Action speak louder than words. You are a changemaker – you can change the world. The only thing stopping you is…you! Please I implore you to make the difference – every bit counts and if we all do our part then wow – what a wonderful world we could live in. If you can’t lead the way, support those who are making a difference – find an organisation you think is inspiring and get involved.

7) You are inviting people all over the world to host their own screening of the film. Can you tell us more about how people can do this?

On 11/11/12 – we want anyone and everyone to consider hosting their own screening of the 11Eleven Project. For some people that can mean getting together 10 best friends and showing it in your house – for other its about getting your school/ university/ town hall/ library/ religious centre to open up the doors and share the film with your community. We celebrate inclusion – the more the merrier. This is a unique opportunity to be part of a worldwide movement. Check out our website www.11elevenproject.com and sign up to host a screening.

A  mix of Martian essential oils inspires young imaginations, whilst the sounds and lights of the red planet animate the space. Martian passports, alien money, 1kg cans of gravity, abduction kits and SPF 5000 sunscreen are just some of the ‘Made on Mars’ gift products sold in the Martian Embassy store.

We caught up with Chris Bosse of LAVA to delve deeper into this inspirational and otherworldly project. Situated just around the corner from The Loop HQ in Redfern, we’re itching to go and poke our noses in and experience the intergalactic excitement!

1) First things first, how did this idea come about? What was the inspiration / insight?

Sydney Story Factory is a new not-for-profit creative writing centre targeting marginalised young people in Sydney. The inspiration came from San Francisco’s 826 Valencia Pirate Supply Store founded by novelist Dave Eggers in 2002. Seven other chapters with different themes have since opened in the US. Novelist Nick Hornby in 2010 opened The Ministry of Stories in London, behind Hoxton Street Monster Supplies.

2) This was a really collaborative project. How did you all come together to work on the Martian Embassy?

Will O’Rourke produced, conceptualised and constructed the space with their creative partners – The Glue Society and us at LAVA. The Glue Society then developed the brand identity and came up with the idea of a Martian theme, which they tested with kids – of all ages!

For the design inspiration we at LAVA travelled back to some great stories – think of Moby Dick, H. G. Wells’ Time Machine and 2001: A Space Odyssey by Stanley Kubrick. The goal is to awaken creativity in kids, and the design had to fire up the engines of kids’ imagination so we knew we didn’t want to do a cliché Martian spaceship metal saucer.

We decided on a fusion of a whale, a rocket and a time tunnel, an intergalactic journey – from the embassy, at the street entrance, to the shop full of red planet traveller essentials, to the classroom. By the time kids reach the writing classes they have forgotten they are in “school”. The immersive space of 1068 oscillating plywood ribs is brought to life by red planet light and sound projections.

Using a fluid geometry merging the three program components [embassy, school and shop], a computer model was sliced and ‘nested’ into buildable components. The timber ribs create the space, shelves, seats, benches, storage, counters and displays and continue as strips on the floor. Edged with Martian green, the curvy plywood flows seamlessly so that walls, ceiling and floor – space, structure and ornament – become one element.

Our architecture is not about decoration – it is about fusing structure, space and architectural expression into one single element.

3) What challenges did you face along the way?

Putting all the 1068 pieces of CNC-cut plywood together like a giant puzzle! Turning a long dark unloved shop into a fun space in a short period of time thanks to the most amazing volunteers.

4) What is your favourite thing about this project?

I like how wall, floor and ceiling become one single element. There are no straight lines – it is one fluid continuum.

I’ve also loved watching how the children inhabit the space, crawl all over it and experience their own worlds. And they are mesmerised by the space – is it a whale? A dinosaur? A tunnel? A cave? Then they want to know if the shop goodies such as Martian Gravity and SPF 5000 sunscreen really do come from Mars.

From a design perspective smaller projects like the embassy give us the opportunity to create innovative solutions that we can then apply to larger scale projects. It’s a good example of LAVA’s creative process – Mankind, Nature and Technology. And it demonstrates how it is possible to create more with less, more architecture and more amenities, with less material, less energy footprint, and where possible, less money.

We at LAVA see nature as holding all the answers. The geometries in nature create both efficiency and beauty. Naturally evolving systems can create new building typologies and structures. Computation allows you to simulate this natural behaviour, it is often misunderstood as superficial mimicry, but the potential is in understanding the principles behind nature, not only the appearance.

5) What would you do differently if you could do this project again?

We underestimated the amount of time it takes to get a pro bono project off the ground, however it was great to work with such creative people and on such an important mission! NASA’s Curiosity Rover mission took seven months to get from Earth to Mars – we took a little less time, and we had a lot of fun doing it.

6) What advice would you give to someone embarking on a similar kind of project?

Be realistic about cost and timeframe, get strong partners on board, and once you decide to go for it, don’t look back and run with it. We spent about 2000 hours on the job and counting, but it was worth every minute.

7) Can you draw your creative process for us?

Storm Surfers follows two-time world champion Tom Carroll and big wave tow-in pioneer Ross Clarke-Jones as they hunt down and ride waves as tall as four-story buildings.

First things first, why did you come up with this idea? What was your inspiration / insight?

As a producer I am always looking out for good ideas with subject matter that I can get passionate about. It takes about 3yrs – 5yrs to make a film so you really want to believe in what you are making or it makes it hard to sell it. Storm Surfers is something I can really ‘froth’ about. I surf. Tom Carroll and Ross Clarke Jones are childhood heroes. I love making adventure films. It’s fun.

Was this a collaborative project?

We work with a team of up to 100 or more people on a project like Storm Surfers. It’s super collaborative and there are lots of specialist we need to work with from yacht designers to 3D Stereographic optimisation technicians. Oh, and the directors, writers, all-media producers and investors. These are the key collaborators who work right from the beginning of the project and are still there at the very, very end… 3 years later.

What challenges did you face along the way?

Where do I begin? The challenge of shooting a stereo 3D film in the middle of the Southern Ocean in a giant storm in 10m swell and keeping it in focus is pretty hard to describe. It was super, super tough. But the results are incredible. The post production of Storm Surfers in stereo 3D film was also incredibly challenging as no one had ever worked with 7 different camera formats before. So we were doing a world first on the shoot and in post production.

The other big challenge that was really satisfying was delivering Storm Surfers as a movie, four part TV series, game, E-Book and 20 part web series. As the producer, I am moving from edit suite, to game production suite, to E-Book editorial suite, to social marketing suite all day. It’s a lot of fun creatively.

What advice would you give to someone embarking on a similar kind of project?

You need to think big. You need to be willing to risk everything to get a project of this scale off the ground and completed. You need to believe. And you need to own a big chunk of the back-end royalties to make it worth it.

What is your favourite thing about this project?

The best thing about making Storm Surfers is we get to work with an incredible team of people making the craziest show about a bunch of guys chasing huge waves around the globe and people give us a whole bunch of money to do it. Super cool. Super fun. I found myself on the bridge of a 50ft jet-cat with our 3D camera team on the back shooting Tom Carroll surfing a 30ft wave 75km out to sea travelling at about 80km an hour… and I thought “I have the best job in the world!!”