Exellence and Awards
VCE Season of Excellence 2024 celebrates innovation, creativity and passion
Kicking off with Top Talks at State Library Victoria, the VCE Season of Excellence 2024 has been a celebration of the state’s emerging researchers, visual artists, designers, musicians, dancers, actors, and filmmakers.
We highlight the remaining event opportunities and award winners, including a spotlight piece about Michael Streader, Top Designs exhibitor and Top Class Sound composer, who was the winner of the inaugural Eckersley's Prize for Environmental Design.
Top Designs 2024 is now open at Melbourne Museum, showcasing the innovative work of design students from across Victoria. This year 92 works were selected from over 1000 applications.
The studies represented included VCE Media, Product Design and Technology, Theatre Studies, Systems Engineering and Visual Communication Design, VCE VET Creative and Digital Media, Integrated Technologies, Engineering Studies, Furnishing and Music (Sound Production).
Get Top Designs 2024 tickets
Top Screen launched at ACMI with a full house in attendance to see 14 of Victoria’s emerging filmmakers. From documentaries, music videos to various animation forms, this year’s program includes a diverse range of styles and genres.
Get Top Screen tickets
Attendees can also book to view the filmmakers’ plans in a special offering at ACMI’s Swinburne Studio.
Season 2024 continues with the following events:
Top Designs 2024 Eckersley’s Prize Winners
A judging panel of 3 design experts had the difficult job of selecting works for each award category in the Top Designs 2024 Eckersley’s Prizes. Panellists included Eckersley’s Art Specialist and Account Manager Dani Scaramuzzino, Museums Victoria Experience Developer Mei Liu, and Head of Engagement at Environmental Education Victoria Stephanie Mitten.
We congratulate the award recipients:
Michael Streader from University High School, winner of the Eckersley’s prize for Environmental Design for VCE Product Design and Technology work Microbat and Pardalote Nest Boxes.
Michael Streader from University High School
Erin Stewardson from Northern College of the Arts and Technology and Ivanhoe Girls’ Grammar School, winner of the Eckersley’s prize for Social Impact Design for VCE VET Integrated Technologies work Driver Fatigue Detector.
Erin Stewardson from Northern College of the Arts and Technology and Ivanhoe Girls’ Grammar School
Ashleigh McGuire from Bacchus Marsh Grammar, winner of the Eckersley’s prize for Human-Centred Design for VCE Product Design and Technology work Anti-Anxiety Hoodie.
Ashleigh McGuire from Bacchus Marsh Grammar
Christopher Batras from Penola Catholic College, winner of the Eckersley’s prize for Accessible Design for VCE Systems Engineering work ALMMPA, Affordable Lightweight Multiarticulate Myoelectric Prosthetic Arm.
Christopher Batras from Penola Catholic College
Lily Tran from The Mac.Robertson Girls' High School, winner of the Eckersley’s prize for Research and Development for VCE Media work Shooting Rabbits.
Lily Tran from The Mac.Robertson Girls' High School
Michael Streader, Top Designs exhibitor and Top Class sound composer wins Eckersley’s Prize for Environmental Design
Michael Streader studied Product Design and Technology and Music Investigation as part of his VCE at the University High School, Parkville, in 2023.
Drawing on his passion for wildlife conservation and inspired by his take on the intersection of art and ecology, Michael created works for his year-long artistic projects, that were selected for Top Designs and Top Class Sound in 2024.
Michael’s Microbat and Pardalote Nest Boxes won the Eckersley’s prize for Environmental Design with the panel commenting ‘(We) recognised this student’s dedication and depth of research into biodiversity decline as well as their refined design aesthetic.’
His work exemplifies high achievement in VCE Product Design and Technology by meeting the needs of an end-user profile through innovative design.
Michael said ‘I was really excited to have my work presented (in Top Designs). The central theme of my product is about encouraging and inspiring people to provide habitat for wildlife that's perhaps lesser known in our urban areas. I aimed to get people to engage in that through good design.
I wanted to make people inspired to set up habitat spaces, by making really beautiful objects that almost have a sculptural element. The pattern on the boxes not only is an aesthetic choice, but a surface where the bats can land and grip onto these grooved spaces, and climb through into the interior of the box.‘
For Michael’s VCE Music Investigation study, he composed a piece called Dacelo Calling which was performed live at Top Class Sound at Darebin Arts Centre.
A beautiful and experimental soundscape that reflects his passion for wildlife, the composition features trumpet, classical guitar, and recorded and recreated birdsong. Michael expertly reproduces a variety of calls using just his trumpet’s mouthpiece.
‘This work aims to evoke the atmosphere of the shrubby foothills and wet forests of the Otway Ranges and the birdlife which inhabits this region. It involves literal transcriptions and imitations of birdcalls, mainly the Laughing Kookaburra and Golden Whistler, in addition to freely composed sections.’ Michael said.
‘Dacelo Calling is to be performed with a soundtrack recorded in the Great Otway National Park in Victoria, Australia and features the calls of cockatoos, wattlebirds, and a chorus of small honeyeaters, wrens, thornbills, and robins.’
Michael is now studying for a Bachelor of Wildlife and Conservation Biology to continue his passion for ecology.
Top Screen Jury Prize
The Top Screen Jury Prize celebrates outstanding filmmaking talent to encourage further development of skills and passion. Prize winners were announced at the Top Screen Premiere on Friday 15 March at ACMI.
This year’s Jury Prize was selected by Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) Publications and Audience Development Manager Adolfo Aranjuez, ACMI School Programs Producer Garry Westmore, and Alice McShane, Conference Programmer at the Australian International Documentary Conference (AIDC).
The winning film was Cat by Gabe Hartshorne from Northcote High School. The film is a Lynchian psychological horror that considers the danger of obsession. The Jury Panel praised Cat for its relatability and intrigue. ‘Seeming initially like an intimate portrait of a pet and its enamoured owner, the film soon morphs into a study of the desire to seize and subsume the Other. This sucker-punch is not just narratively but filmically well executed, coming together in an unnerving yet transfixing work that shows a young filmmaker full of promise,’ said Adolfo Aranjuez.
From left: Top Screen Jury Prize winners Fynn Williams, Gabe Hartshorne and Jasmine Lui. Photo by Nicole Cleary.
The first runner up was LORENZO? by Jasmine Lui from Ringwood Secondary College, and the second runner up was I Know What They’re Thinking by Fynn Williams from Dromana Secondary College.
The Jury Prize is generously sponsored by Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) and ACMI. Each winner received a MIFF Multipass-12, ACMI Membership, and a place on the MIFF Schools Youth Jury.
MIFF Schools is an initiative that aims to enrich the cinema experience for younger viewers, with a film program that aligns with several Victorian Curriculum learning areas and capabilities. As panellists, the Top Screen Jury Award winners will have the fantastic opportunity to watch the MIFF Schools program and deliberate the best title.
You can view all of the Top Screen 2024 films at ACMI until Wednesday 8 May.
Get Top Screen 2024 tickets
MIFF Schools goes on sale Friday 17 May, and tickets will be available via MIFF's website.
Top Acts
You can see highlight performances from this year’s Season at Top Acts 2024.
This year, theatre-maker and artist Katie Cawthorne has been appointed Artistic Director and will work closely with involved performers on the concert production.
Get Top Acts 2024 tickets
Registrations for PESA 2024 state heats closing soon
Registrations are now open for the Plain English Speaking Award (PESA) 2024 state heats.
This competition celebrates the voices of students and is an excellent opportunity for young people to speak on issues they feel passionate about.
The state heats run from Monday 20 May to Friday 31 May in schools across regional and metropolitan Victoria.
Applicants must have been aged between 15 and 18 years on 1 January 2024, and teachers can register a maximum of 2 students per school.