Dear Members and Friends, As the winter chill settles in, things are heating up at the APDG, and I am thrilled to share some of the vital work happening behind the scenes to support our vibrant community of designers.
We have received a strong and heartfelt response to the petition calling for support to help secure the future of Hero Frock Hire. Thank you to everyone who took the time to sign, share their thoughts and add their voice to this important issue.
In this Spring newsletter, APDGreen Representative Imogen Ross welcomes back Jen McAuliffe from Sustainable Screens Australia, and shares opportunities for members to extend their knowledge of current best practice in the screen industry.
The Screen Committee has been highly active over the past few months, focusing on direct industry equity, targeted on-set advocacy, and expanding resources for our screen members. A central priority has been our ongoing consultation with key screen agencies.
The Guild is working on preparing Rates Cards for both screen and live performance designers. These are intended as a kind of ‘back pocket’ ready reckoner for designers. In Live Performance we are planning to base these Rates Cards on the recently updated rates tables that you can find in the Live Performance Guidelines
The 2026 Census will be undertaken on August 11. This is when every Australian is counted. Up to now designers have not been counted properly – so to a significant degree we are ‘invisible’ in current Australian Bureau of Statistics data.
In 2024 Costume Designer Sabina Myers was the worthy recipient of the Thelma Afford Award. In the following report Sabina describes some of her study experiences in Italy and Sydney, that were supported by the award.
Don’t miss the opportunity to pursue a career in the Costume or Art Department. Screen NSW has opened Stream C of its Crew Development Program, offering successful applicants fully paid 20-week placements on local or offshore productions filmed in NSW.
This summer has seen the guild engage with high profile industry events including AACTA Awards and Festival. There was a wonderful turnout of nominees and winners at the AACTA Awards, reflecting the outstanding work of APDG members across film and television. Congratulations to all the APDG members who were nominated and won awards. Andrew Cox represented APDG [...]
In 2025 the Live Performance Committee was busy with a lot of work being done negotiating with industry bodies that have the potential to influence the way we work as designers. This work is continuing in 2026, as well as the formulation of ready-to-use rate cards to assist designers in negotiating a fee fee for our work. We have [...]