Adelaide Film Festival together with Samstag Museum of Art is delighted to premiere the inaugural AFF/Samstag Expand Moving Image Commission at AFF 2024. This stunning new work is a collaboration between visual artists Susan Norrie and Emmaline Zanelli and filmmaker Matthew Thorne who met at Expand Lab 2022.

AFF Expand Lab was launched in 2022 as a major professional development opportunity to take place alongside the annual Adelaide Film Festival. It continues AFF’s commitment to supporting screen-based practice and its crossover with visual arts and interactive media.

AFF is also pleased to announce the 30 participants (15 South Australian and 15 national participants)selected to take part in AFF Expand Lab 2024. This is the third edition of AFF Expand Lab, which brings together some of Australia’s most creative and inventive artists, filmmakers, XR and VR practitioners in a development and commissioning process to foster new ideas for moving image artworks.

Participants will form teams during the Lab and develop concepts to pitch for the Expand $100,000 Moving Image Commission. In addition, projects will be selected for mentoring by Illuminate Adelaide and the Art Gallery of South Australia.

Hamish Balnaves, CEO of The Balnaves Foundation, Principal Partner of Expand Lab said:

“The Balnaves Foundation congratulates the 30 selected participants for AFF Expand Lab 2024. In a competitive environment these practitioners have been offered the chance to grow their practice and generate new moving image concepts. I am also delighted to see the inaugural AFF/Samstag Expand Moving Image Commission, I was pleased to attend the AFF Expand Lab 2022 presentation day where Susan, Matthew and Emmaline shared their concept. They are an impressive trio of artists with a shared passion to talk about the contemporary Australian experience of fly-in-fly-out workers, their families, environmental impacts and the complex relationship experienced by First Nation custodians of the land.”

AFF’s CEO & Creative Director, Mat Kesting, said:

“Once again 30 exceptional practitioners will come together to make new creative connections, develop ideas and expand their thinking. The Adelaide Film Festival has a history of commissioning ground-breaking moving image works in its 20-year partnership with Samstag Museum of Art. For AFF 2024 we are delighted to present a new moving image commission Dwelling: Adelaide Issue by Expand Lab 2022 participant and Venice Biennale of Art Gold Lion Winner Archie Moore premiering on 11 October at Samstag.”

The mentors for AFF Expand Lab 2024 are Iranian-born, Melbourne-based photo artist Hoda Afshar; Ben Joseph Andrews and Emma Roberts whose mixed reality work, Turbulence: Jamais Vu, screened in the Venice 2024 Best Of Immersive program and Amrita Hepi (Bundjulung/Ngapuhi Territories) dancer and choreographer with an interdisciplinary practice.

The AFF/Samstag Moving Image Commissions will be presented at Samstag Museum of Art from October 11 – November 29 with free entry. AFF Expand Lab 2024 will be held at Tech Central, Lot Fourteen from November 1 – 8. It is an initiative of Adelaide Film Festival with Principal Partner The Balnaves Foundation, and the Government of South Australia, Samstag Museum of Art, Art Gallery of South Australia and Illuminate Adelaide. With support from Lot Fourteen.

The 30 participants of AFF Expand Lab 2024 are:

Stavroula Adameitis (SA) – Visual Artist
Arthur Ah Chee (SA) – Media Artist, XR/ VR Creator, Games Creative
James Calvert (SA) – Filmmaker, XR/ VR Creator, Games Creative
Michael Carney (SA) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, XR/ VR Creator
Diana Chester (NSW) – Media Artist, Sound Artist 
Richard Coburn (SA) – Media Artist, Filmmaker, Videographer, Writer/Director, Animator, VFX Artist
Amber Cronin (SA) – Visual Artist
Naveed Farro (VIC) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Filmmaker, XR/ VR Creator, Games Creative
Harrison Hall (VIC) – Digital Artist, Choreographer
Josh Harle (NSW) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Videographer, XR/ VR Creator, Games Creative
Alysha Hermann (SA) – Visual Artist, Filmmaker, Performance Maker, Multi-Disciplinary Writer
Peter Howard (SA) – Filmmaker, Virtual Production - LED Volume ICVFX
Rebecca Metcalf (NSW) – Media Artist, Filmmaker
Logan Mucha (VIC) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Filmmaker
Isabel Peppard (VIC) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Filmmaker
Rosina Possingham (SA) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, XR/ VR Creator
Naina Sen (NT) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Filmmaker
Kaspar Schmidt Mumm (SA) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Games Creative, Contemporary Artist
Eleanor Scicchitano (SA) – Curator, Writer
Gabriella Smart (SA) – Composer
Emily Steel (SA) – Filmmaker, Playwright, Emerging Screenwriter
Lara Thoms (VIC) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Performance Maker/ Socially Engaged Practices
Kasia Töns (SA) – Visual Artist
Jen Valender (VIC) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Filmmaker
Jesse Vogelaar (VIC) – Filmmaker
Melody Woodnutt (VIC) – Visual Artist, Filmmaker
Henry Wolff (SA) – Visual Artist
Ursula Woods (TAS) – Filmmaker, Cinematographer, Video Artist
Sarah-Jane Woulahan (VIC) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Filmmaker, XR/ VR Creator
Carla Zimbler (NSW) – Visual Artist, Media Artist, Videographer, Live VJ / Projection Artist