AFF Expand Lab 2022

The inaugural AFF Expand Lab was held from 23 – 28 October 2023 as part of Adelaide Film Festival program. This new AFF initiative brings together Australian visual artists, media artists, film and XR practitioners to generate new ideas for exceptional moving image works. Outcomes include the AFF/Samstag Expand Moving Image Commission and mentoring opportunities.

Expand Lab continues AFF’s commitment to presenting acclaimed development programs including Film Lab New Voices and HIVE. It is delivered by Adelaide Film Festival in partnership with Samstag Museum of Art, Illuminate Adelaide, Art Gallery of South Australia and is supported by Arts SA and the Balnaves Foundation.

This significant collaborative partnership received the Ruby Award for Outstanding Collaboration for AFF Expand Lab 2022.

AFF/Samstag Expand Moving Image 2022 Commission

A major outcome of AFF Expand Lab 2022 was the commissioning of one new moving image work to be presented at Samstag Museum of Art during the 2024 Adelaide Film Festival.

The AFF/Samstag Expand Moving Image 2022 Commission for $60,000 was awarded to the three-person team of Susan Norrie (NSW), Matthew Thorne (SA) and Emmaline Zanelli (SA). Their project FIFO is a moving image work which will explore the transitory experience of 'fly-in, fly-out' mining work as a means to analyse the broader culture of mining and its role in Australia's identity.

In addition, FLASHOVER by CJ Taylor (SA) and Robert Walton (Vic) was selected for mentoring by Art Gallery of South Australia. FLASHOVER is a moving image installation exploring the power of fire and the experience of being caught in a firestorm. The project has received funding support from Arts South Australia and the Victorian College of the Arts Virtual Production Fund.

FIFO and FLASHOVER were selected from eight project concepts developed by collaborative groups during the lab and presented to an invited audience and selection panel on the final day of lab.

AFF Expand Lab 2022 Participants

Participation in AFF Expand Lab 2022 was through a competitive application process, with places for 20 South Australian and 10 national participants.  105 applications were received for the 30 places in the lab with selection of participants made by a Steering Committee comprised of the project partners.

AFF’s CEO & Creative Director Mat Kesting said: “Adelaide Film Festival is thrilled at the response from across Australia to this new initiative.  The number of applications received is testament that Australian creatives are seeking out innovative opportunities to collaborate, learn and expand their thinking. I truly believe that AFF Expand Lab will be a hothouse for exciting ideas to emerge in a supportive environment under the guidance of renowned mentors. The Adelaide Film Festival is the ideal backdrop to the Lab with the city coming alive with cinema lovers and filmmakers from across Australia and the world in attendance.”

Mentors

The mentors for AFF Expand Lab 2022 were leading New York-based Australian artists Soda Jerk, a two-person art collective who make sample-based experimental films with a rogue documentary impulse; Lynette Wallworth a two-time Emmy award-winning artist/filmmaker renowned for creating profoundly empathetic works while pushing the boundaries of emerging technologies, and Alex Davies, an award-winning Australian media artist whose practice spans a diverse range of media and experiments with interaction, technology, perception, mixed reality and illusion.

AFF EXPAND Lab 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.