TAC’s short film competition is giving Victoria’s youth a chance to direct the next road safety campaign. R&I sits down with TAC’s management, as well as a past winner to learn more.
As of April 5, 87 people have lost their lives on Victorian roads. Out of these 87 lives, 17 were young people aged between 18 and 25 years old.
According to the TAC, young drivers (18-25) continue to be over-represented in road trauma; being involved in more crashes resulting in death and serious injury than any other group of drivers on the road.
Each year, around 50 (five-year average) young people are killed and 1800 are seriously injured in road crashes.
As a pioneer in road safety and support services, the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) helps to establish payment for those injured in transport accidents, while also promoting road safety nation-wide.
The TAC’s campaigns have aimed to have an impact on viewers while highlighting the dangers and importance of preventing factors such as speed, drink driving, fatigue, protective equipment for motorcyclists and more. In fact, the TAC’s first television advertisement went to air in 1987.
Now the TAC is granting young filmmakers the opportunity to share their perspectives to share road safety messages to the wider community.
The real prize
The TAC’s Split-Second Competition encourages young filmmakers between the ages of 18-25 to submit a short film with the messaging being around the importance of road safety, as well as the potential dangers associated.
TAC CEO Joe Calafiore says the competition gives young filmmakers a platform to make a meaningful impact on society.
“The Split-Second Competition provides a unique opportunity for young Victorians to use their creative skills to help save lives. By producing impactful short films that raise awareness of important road safety issues, young people can be a powerful force for change on our roads,” Calafiore says.
“The TAC is proud of the growing impact of the Split-Second Competition and is excited to be expanding to produce two winning concepts in 2023.”
The two competition briefs were released by the TAC for participants, outlining the key messages, guidelines and relevant facts and statistics for each short film.
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The first brief focused on driver fatigue, with the key message of ‘you snooze, you lose’. The second brief highlighted vehicle safety, with the key message of ‘safer vehicles save lives’. Young filmmakers are able to choose one or submit projects for both briefs.
TAC Head of Road Safety Samantha Cockfield says the two briefs directly target prevalent causes of road trauma.
“Reducing the prevalence of drowsy driving, and promoting vehicle safety, are critical in improving road safety outcomes for young Victorians, and by engaging young creatives in the process we’re ensuring that messages are delivered in a relatable way,” Cockfield says.
“The Split-Second competition prides itself on giving young Victorians the opportunity to use their story and film-making skills to directly communicate with peers on important road safety issues.”
Fatigue is a major cause of crashes, with TAC data showing fatigue contributes to 16-20 per cent of all road crashes in Victoria, and around 30 people die each year and up to 200 people suffer serious injuries due to these types of crashes (five-year average).
When it comes to vehicle safety, a focus has been placed on the increased safety capabilities of newer vehicles compared to older vehicles. According to the TAC, in 2020 64 per cent of vehicle fatalities occurred in vehicles aged 10 years or older.
A winning cause
The winner of the short film competition receives a $70,000 production budget, with second place also receiving a $30,000 budget to produce an advertisement promoting road safety.
In 2022, the competition received 307 entries, a 50 per cent increase year on year.
First place also receives $5000 in prize money. The prize money aims to encourage the future development and endeavours of the participants and give them a platform to launch their careers as filmmakers, content creators and more.
But Felix Barnett believes the potential for the short film to save someone’s life is the real prize.
Barnett was the 2021 winner of the Split-Second film competition, with his short film ‘To Die For’, highlighting the risks associated with drink driving.
His film highlighted the dangers associated with drink driving, depicting a bartender describing and mixing the ingredients of a ‘car crash’.
He says the original idea for his short film originated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
‘It was during lockdown, so I had some time to think through the brief. I went on a few walks and was chatting with people when I came across the phrase ‘to die for’. The idea grew from there, and I thought it could depict a party situation,” he says.
“But I thought ‘what if I could refine it down to its simplest form?’ What if it was just the making of the drink itself?”
Barnett says finding out that he had won the competition was “amazing”. Shortly after production began. A production company which partners with the competition provided the production crew and equipment, as well as guidance for the project.
Barnett believes the short films are effective as they are made by young people, for young people.
“I think it’ really important to get young Victorians involved in the conversation, because they’re obviously the least experienced drivers on the roads. We’re over-represented in road trauma,” he says.
“Who better to talk to young people, than the young people themselves.”
And for those who are thinking of having a go, Barnett says “why not”?
“There’s no downside to entering, so you might as well give it a try. You can come at this from any angle really,” he says.
“I came from a design background, going into advertising and previous winners have been from TV, film and other backgrounds.”
These past winners include ‘A Trial Before The King’ by Alex Lowe (2020), ‘The Afterlife Bar’ by Alyssa De Leo (2019) and ‘Gates of Heaven’ by Callum Borthwick (2018).
Barnett adds that the competition can help to further expand the knowledge and portfolio of participants.
“[Since winning the competition] I’ve been able to write more ads and get more time on set to direct more films, which I really love doing,” he says.
Entries for the Split-Second Film Competition closed on May 4, but young filmmakers can still learn more about the competition: www.tac.vic.gov.au
This article was originally published in the May edition of our magazine. To read the magazine, click here.