Budding filmmakers to call action on road safety

Published date: 24 May 2018

The Transport Accident Commission is giving budding filmmakers the chance to access $50,000 to produce a short film with a road safety message.

The TAC has partnered with the Melbourne International Film Festival for the inaugural Split Second youth film competition.

People aged between 18 and 25 are eligible to enter the competition, which opens today.

The competition calls on entrants to submit an outline of a 45-second film addressing the issue of distracted driving. The theme of this year’s competition is “the problem is in our hands”.

A panel of judges from the TAC and film and advertising industry will choose a winner who will receive a $50,000 production budget to make their film with help from award-winning production company Positive Ape.

The winner will also receive $5000 in prize money and their film will feature during 500 MIFF screenings in Melbourne and regional Victoria.

TAC’s Engagement Senior Manager Meg Jacobs said young people were some of Victoria’s most vulnerable road users and the competition aimed to highlight the importance of avoiding distractions while driving.

“Mobile phone use is emerging as one of the major factors in fatal and injury crashes,” Ms Jacobs said.

“We want to empower young people to have conversations with their friends about making safe choices when they’re behind the wheel.

“A road safety film made by a young person will resonate deeply with their peers and send a strong message,” she said.

The competition is open until 13 June and the winner will be announced on 22 June. For more information or to enter, visit: http://miff.com.au/splitsecondfilmcomp

MIFF starts on August 2 and finishes on August 19.

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