The Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) has partnered with the Andrew Plain Memorial Fund to launch a new scholarship and graduate prize supporting female and gender-diverse sound practitioners.
The Women in Sound Scholarship and Graduate Prize will be awarded annually, with the scholarship available to final-year sound elective students undertaking AFTRS’ Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production. A separate graduate prize will recognise excellence in sound design among female and gender-diverse practitioners completing undergraduate or postgraduate studies.
The new awards will complement AFTRS’ existing Sonic Sorority program, which aims to address the underrepresentation of women and gender-diverse people in technical screen roles. The program is one of three extracurricular initiatives at the school, alongside similar programs focused on cinematography and directing. Each provides students with industry connections, practical experience and professional development opportunities.
Applications for the inaugural 2027 awards will open in November and close in December 2026.
The initiative honours the legacy of Australian sound designer Andrew Plain, who died in 2013. Throughout his career, Plain worked as a sound designer, writer and educator, contributing to the Australian screen industry while mentoring emerging practitioners. His partner, Adrienne Parr, oversees the Andrew Plain Memorial Fund, which was established with support from the Australian Screen Sound Guild.
“When I first heard about the Sonic Sorority initiative, I knew it was a perfect fit for the fund,” Parr said. “Andrew had a particular interest in, and commitment to, screen sound education – both in its practice and its theory. He made it a point to work on all types of productions (features films, documentaries, shorts, etc.) to broaden his own understanding of screen sound.”
Plain maintained a longstanding relationship with AFTRS throughout his career, regularly delivering guest lectures and offering mentorship to students through his company, Huzzah Sound.
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“While working in the industry and running Huzzah Sound, he guest lectured at AFTRS, as well as other tertiary institutions, and wrote articles for screen journals,” Parr said. “He forever found time to assist and encourage anyone interested in furthering their knowledge and understanding of sound. Although he wasn’t an AFTRS graduate, the proximity of Huzzah Sound (located at the then Fox Studios) to AFTRS meant that his door was always open to AFTRS students. Indeed, a number of them went on to work at Huzzah Sound.”
AFTRS CEO Dr Nell Greenwood said the partnership would help create opportunities for emerging talent while addressing barriers to participation in the screen sound industry. “Andrew Plain was a passionate advocate for screen sound education and for nurturing emerging talent,” she said.
“This scholarship and graduate prize honour that legacy while creating meaningful opportunities for the next generation of female and gender-diverse sound practitioners. We are so grateful for the support of the Andrew Plain Memorial Fund, in helping us build a more diverse and representative screen industry in Australia.”