Young Victorians are being encouraged to help tackle road safety challenges by coming up with a short film that will boost safety on our roads and help save lives.
Minister for Roads and Road Safety Melissa Horne joined the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) at Australian Centre for Moving Image (ACMI) on Friday 24 March to launch the state government’s 2023 Split Second Competition.
The short film competition gives young creatives an opportunity to produce impactful road safety campaigns addressing issues relevant to their age group.
This year, the competition is calling on Victorians aged between 18 and 25 to develop a script addressing either the risks associated with drowsy driving or the importance of vehicle safety.
On top of a $5,000 cash prize, the winner will receive a $70,000 production budget to have their script produced by leading production studio Sweet Shop, before appearing in cinemas across the state.
For the first time, Split Second will also award a runner-up with a $30,000 budget to have their idea produced and promoted across social media.
The competition comes as Victoria experiences a horror start to the year on the state’s roads, with 77 fatalities, this is compared to 57 at the same time last year.
The number of young drivers and passengers dying on the state’s roads has increased, with 16 people aged between 18 and 25 killed, up from 11 at this time in 2022.
Minister for Roads and Road Safety Melissa Horne said everyone needs to play their part in keeping our roads safe.
“Far too many tragedies happen on our roads,” she said.
Vehicle safety and drowsy driving are both critical issues when it comes to improving the safety of young people on Victorian roads.
Over the last five years, more than 70 per cent of driver and passenger fatalities aged between 18 and 25 have been in vehicles more than 10 years old, and 54 per cent of drivers in this age group admit to driving while very tired.
The Split Second Competition is one of a suite of Government initiatives aimed at promoting safer travel behaviours from a young age, and aims to empower young people to become part of the solution to road safety.
2021 Split Second competition winner Felix Barnett said the competition gave them greater understanding of filmmaking and the experience was invaluable.
“Following the screening of my film, many old high school friends reached out to tell me how powerful they thought it was,” he said.
Applications are now open until 4 May, with the winning film to premier at ACMI in October.
For more information on how to apply, visit tac.vic.gov.au/road-safety/split-second.
