Dr Richard Jones

Biography

A former ABC cinematographer and journalist, Richard is an independent filmmaker, academic and community development practitioner. He has a strong track record in creatively led research, including leadership of large, multi-partner Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkages grants as a Chief Investigator, Writer, Producer and/or Director. He has also led or co-led commissioned research and evaluation projects, including for VicHealth, the Commonwealth Office for Women and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, a US government foreign aid agency. Richard’s research-driven creative productions have won national and international awards and accolades. He has given many conference presentations, seminars and workshops, including six invited keynote addresses discussing his creative practice.

Richard has made 27 publicly funded film, video and interactive programs as a writer, producer and/or director, primarily in the fields of social justice and education. His productions have screened in the St Kilda, Adelaide, Melbourne, Chicago, Lisbon, Cork and Madrid film festivals, and at the London Institute of Contemporary Arts, the British, Hong Kong and American Film Institutes (Australia Festival), the New York Guggenheim Museum of Modern Art (Antipodean Currents) and le Palais des Festivals de Cannes (MILA).

As a contract Executive Producer for Film Victoria, Richard tendered out and supervised the production of large-scale educational multimedia programs. He then conceived, wrote and directed SomaZone, a youth health and well-being interactive. Richard was a finalist for four AIMIA international multimedia awards, including ‘Interactive Writer of the Year’, and two ATOM international awards, including ‘Most Creative and Innovative Multimedia’, for the production. He then won the prestigious Gold Camera for ‘Best Interactive Product’ in international competition at the 31st US Film & Video Festival for the program’s “outstanding creativity”.

Richard has taught in senior high schools (TVET), TAFEs, under- and postgraduate university courses, professional development programs and non-formal adult education in Australia and overseas. He has been a lecturer at five Australian universities and has held project-based appointments as a Director-in-Residence at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT, Creative Media), Artist-in-Residence at Griffith University (GU, School of Arts), Visiting Guest Artist at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA, Film & TV), Production Fellow and then Senior Research Fellow at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT, Creative Industries & Education), Principal Research Fellow/Associate Professor at the University of New England (UNE, Education) and Professorial Fellow (VCA, Centre for Ideas & Community Cultural Development).

While teaching scriptwriting and film production in QUT’s Creative Industries Faculty as well as short courses for the Australian Film, Television and Radio School, Richard led a design research team in producing a series of Online Visual Counselling Tools (OVCTs) funded by three ARC grants. This resulted in a world-first e-counselling program for Australia’s largest youth counselling organisation Kids Helpline (KHL). He also made Talk Out Loud (Creative Director), a national web, print and television campaign for KHL. These projects included short films by final year QUT film, communication design and creative writing students.

Described as “demonstrating dazzling and informative innovations”, the OVCTs project was selected by the Australian Academy of the Humanities as the sole work nationally exemplifying research excellence at ‘Humanities on the Hill’, a presentation to Commonwealth government ministers. It was one of three case studies nationally demonstrating the value of university partnerships with industry. Richard won a further ARC grant as 1^st Chief Investigator, lead Writer, Producer and Creative Director with The Le@rning Federation, VCA and QUT. The Intelligent Learning Objects project produced 12 research-driven online learning activities re-engaging at risk senior high school students in their education.

Over the past 12 years, whenever possible, Richard has worked in Timor-Leste and Indonesia, making films and teaching media production skills with local not-for-profit organisations. In 2018-19, he volunteered for a year with IDEP Selaras Alam, a Bali-based foundation focused on disaster relief and developing sustainable agricultural practices with low-income farmers. Richard also worked with the Pelita Foundation in the 2018 North Lombok earthquake disaster zone, where he assisted with emergency relief programs and documented activities to raise funds from international donors.

Richard’s 2016 research PhD, Shooting the Breeze: Participatory Photo-storytelling with Young Adults in Timor-Leste, was awarded the UNE Chancellor’s Doctoral Research Medal for research “of exceptional merit and at the forefront of the field.” The study’s photo-stories were presented in five evaluated exhibitions to wide acclaim.Hadomi Rai: Portraits of Timor-Leste, a photo-storytelling book, also resulted from the research. The foreword was written by the president of Timor-Leste, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, His Excellency Dr José Ramos-Horta.

In 2021-22, as a Principal Research Fellow/Associate Professor in Education at UNE, Richard worked with an international team producing research and recommendations for establishing a postgraduate teachers’ college in Timor-Leste. The project secured a USD 41 million commitment from the Millennium Challenge Corporation and informed the 2022 implementation agreement between the US and Timor-Leste governments.

Richard has recently completed mentoring a Ezidi refugee as ‘Digital Connections Officer’ assisting his community in using online services. Richard is now working with UNE’s Oorala Aboriginal Centre on the Academy Pathways project, designing and delivering creative arts education in the New England region. He is also unit co-ordinator of French National Cinema at UNE and teaches scriptwriting with the New England Writers’ Centre.