Camp Australia’s Rocketeers Film Festival returns to inspire young creatives

Outside school hours care (OSHC) provider Camp Australia has again run its Rocketeers Film Festival, showcasing short animation films produced by 5,500 of the children in its care. 

Delivered in partnership with StarTime and the Children’s International Film Festival, the initiative was spearheaded by Camp Australia to provide an exciting term break for children across Australia.

During Camp Australia’s Rocketeers Spring holiday program, children were taught how to write, create and animate films and then developed their own short animation films at services around Australia.

In 2022, over 5,500 children created over 1,300 films, more than doubling last year’s participation, and giving children an avenue to express ideas, imagination and emotion.

Commenting on the growth of the program CEO Warren Jacobson said “to say we are thrilled would be an understatement.” 

“Last year the children saw first-hand the power of film to express how they feel; more than doubling the participation and number of films submitted shows how strongly this has resonated with children and families,” he added. 

“It’s clear from the standard of last years’ entries and the growth in interest this year, that the magic of the movie screen is a universal language which engages children and enables them to communicate creatively.”

The program, he continued, is “a novel way to teach children how to think outside the box, problem solve, and work as a team.” 

StarTime representatives Lindsay and Jo Moss agreed, saying “Once you give children the storytelling tools to express themselves and they feel supported to experiment, they just fly! We’re so proud that our partnership with Camp Australia for the Rocketeers Film Festival has provided a platform for many children to shine.”

Expert filmmakers, animators and industry professionals from across Australia offered words of encouragement and praise for every child with a passion for sharing stories through film.

Melbourne-based animator Nathan Robinson congratulated the participants, saying “well done on creating so many awesome short films. Animation is such an amazing technique that allows you to create entire worlds from nothing. It also allows you to explore and learn so many different things.”

Colin Skyba, an experienced Australian film director, encouraged the children to “follow your passions, to do the things that interest you and excite you. If telling stories through making films is your thing, then you should definitely keep going. Congratulations to all the children who shared their stories at the Rocketeers Film Festival!”

Awards were handed out on the big night for Best Film, Best Story, Best Character Design, Best Set Design, Best Sound Design, Best Animation Sequence, Most Creative Figure Transformation, Smoothest Animation, Best Cinematography, Best Voiceover and Most Outstanding Moment.

To view some of the winning films, please see here.