About

ATOMVic is the Victorian chapter of the national organisation Australian Teachers of Media Incorporated (ATOM).

ATOM is an independent, not-for-profit, professional association that has been promoting the study of media and screen literacy for over 50 years. Our goal is to empower students, teachers, parents, and film enthusiasts to analyse and better understand the screen products we enjoy.

Meet our team

Pete Castaldi – Education Resources and Partnership Director

Quinton Li – Education Officer

David Heslin – Editor of Metro magazine & Metro Weekly

Zak Hamer – Online Services Manager

Angie Chan – Online Services Coordinator & Education Content Coordinator

Brian Cheung – Online Services Coordinator & Education Content Producer

Ping How – Finance Manager

Promoting the study of media and screen literacy

Metro magazine

ATOM publishes a critically acclaimed magazine. Metro covers screen production from Australia and the Asia-Pacific region, and publishes longer articles more suited to screen industry professionals, film enthusiasts, and senior secondary and tertiary film and media educators and students.

Supporting Educators

ATOM is deeply involved in supporting teachers to create better, more engaging lesson plans for the younger generation. We produce in-depth study guides and make them available to download from The Education Shop (free for the first 18 months). ATOM Study Guides help teachers prepare units of work for their classes on contemporary issues that are relevant to the curriculum. The guides usually cover at least three curriculum areas, depending on the film or program being covered. ATOM has now produced over 1000 study guides, covering all subject areas across all year levels in primary and secondary education.

Conferences and Screenings

ATOM also runs state, national and international conferences for media and education professionals, and organises screenings of feature films and documentaries for teachers and lecturers throughout Australia via online bookings. Educators can sign up to ATOM’s email lists here.

ATOM Awards & Competitions

ATOM runs the ATOM Awards – open to all screen content producers in Australia and New Zealand – with forty-five categories, including many specifically for primary, secondary and tertiary students. The ATOM Awards have been a staple in the Australian screen industry since 1982.

Notable finalists and winners include:

  • Wenona Byrne, for The Silk, winner of the 1995 ATOM Award for Best Short Fiction. Wenona is now the Director of Literature at the Australia Council for the Arts.
  • Adam Elliot, for Uncle – a finalist for Best Animation in the 1998 ATOM Awards – and Brother, winner of the 2000 ATOM Award for Best Animation. Elliot has gone on to become one of Australia’s best animators, winning the 2004 Academy Award for Best Short Animation.
  • Rachel Griffiths, for her directorial debut short film Tulip, finalist at the 1999 ATOM Awards for Best Short Fiction (Open). Tulip also won the OCIC award at the Melbourne International Film Festival, and Griffiths has gone on to win a trove of awards, including a Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild Awards and AFI Awards.
  • Darlene Johnson, for The Redfern Story, winner of the 2015 ATOM Award for Best Documentary – Social & Political Issues. Johnson’s film Gulpilil – One Red Blood was also a finalist in the 2003 ATOM Awards. The latter was also nominated for a Logie and an Australian Film Critics Circle Award, and Johnson has gone on to win several international awards.
  • Andrew Lancaster, who received a Special Award to Further Filmmaking Skills at the 1995 ATOM Awards for his short film Universal Appliance Co. Lancaster is now a successful filmmaker with many directing and composing credits under his belt, including feature films, music videos and television commercials.
  • Anthony Lucas, for The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello, winner of the 2005 ATOM Award for Best Animation. Lucas was later nominated for the 2006 Academy Award for Best Short Film, Animated.

ATOM also runs three creative media competitions: the 1-Minute Film Competition, the ATOM Photo Comp, and Front Page – a student newspaper competition.

Entering ATOM’s competitions will engage students in activities that fit with school curricula, and encourage teambuilding and confidence as students work together producing content. Finalists will have the opportunity to connect with likeminded people – students and professional content creators alike – to learn more about educational and industry opportunities, and may have their work viewed and discussed through the annual National Screenings Tour.

ATOMVic acknowledges the support of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development through the Strategic Partnerships Program.