Prepared by Melinda Maillard and myself for OPEN CHANNEL's Love Your Work! Short Film Audience Choice Awards, 20 Dec, 2006, Cinema Nova.

Welcome! My name is Andrew Garton. Im the Program Director at OPEN CHANNEL and I would like to thank you all very much for joining us here tonight at our annual members short film festival and audience choice awards, Love Your Work!

Its been over a year now since OPEN CHANNEL left its Fitzroy homeland for SHED 4, Docklands. For over 30 years OPEN CHANNEL has assisted filmmakers and screen practitioners towards the realisation of their unique vision, to tell their stories and those of others.

After 30 years of screen development, 30 years of productions, 1000s and 1000s of training courses and double that of equipment and facilities hires, OPEN CHANNEL has entered a new era in the creation of new works for multiple platforms online, encouraging new talent on screen and fostering mentorships with our esteemed alumni on site at SHED 4.

Esteemed is an understatement... Peter Weir, Fred Schepsie, Sue Brookes, Andrew Wiseman, Chris Warner, Sue Maslin, Steve Thomas, John Moore, Christina Pozzan, Dennis K Smith, Ros Walker, Margo McDonald, Helen Gaynor, Peter Kaufmann, David Tiley, Catherine Marciniak, Cath Dyson, Lizette Atkins, Joe Dolche, Beth Frey and Kim Dalton are some of the few that have found to and from OPEN CHANNEL.  

Love Your Work! is our annual short film screening awards showcasing works producedby emerging and independent filmmakers who are members of OPEN CHANNEL. We received a total of 31 entrants, of which 10 shorts were selected.

All Australian films screened tonight are eligible for a 2007 Inside Film Award. You can find voting cards at the party following our screening.

OPEN CHANNEL gratefully acknowledges the support of the Australian Film Commission and Film Victoria.

Thanks to our venue partner Cinema Nova for hosting tonights event.

Thanks also to our Love Your Work! partners:

• Australian Film Institute
• Barokes Wines
• Brunswick Street Chiropractic Centre
• Cinemarket
• Encore Magazine
• Digital Pictures
• Lemac
• McGills
• The Production Book
• Screen Hub

You will all have received a score card when you arrived tonight. This is your chance to nominate your favourite films screened tonight for an Audience Choice Award. All you have to do is write down your favourite 5 films and hand the score card to an OPEN CHANNEL representative after the screening. The Awards will be presented at the post party.

Hold on to your raffle ticket as we also have some great door prizes to give away.

I hope you enjoy tonights screening... and Ill see you afterwards at our end of year celebration downstairs.

Now a few words from our special guest John Wood, who a lot of you would know from Blue Heelers...