BIOGRAPHY
A former Australian Broadcasting Corporation cinematographer and journalist, Richard is an independent filmmaker and teacher. He has won about $7 million in funding achieved through competitive grant schemes and commercial tenders. Richard has made 34 publicly financed film, video and interactive programs as a Writer, Producer and/or Director, primarily in the fields of social justice, health and wellbeing, and education. His productions have garnered national and international awards and accolades. They have screened in, for example, the St Kilda, 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).
Richard has also worked in male and female maximum security prisons, with disadvantaged youth and with refugees using a photo-storytelling process that develops literacy skills alongside confidence and experiences of self worth. His work with youth in Timor-Leste was the subject of his 2015 award winning UNE PhD. Richard has taught filmmaking at five Australian universities, often as an artist-in-residence, where he has developed creativity courses and has won teaching awards. Richard has been a Senior Fellow at QUT and then the University of Melbourne, an Associate Professor at UNE and a Professorial Fellow at the Victorian College of the Arts. He is making his 34th film, a feature documentary entitled 'The Grit and the Glamour' with country music star, Tori Forsyth.
ARTIST STATEMENT
My work as a filmmaker is largely free to organisations that undertake community focused, public good work. I'm able to do this in between my funded programs, so I prefer short form productions, including web based films. I have strong history of making highly engaging social justice, health and wellbeing programs, alongside teaching and running creative workshops, primarily in scriptwriting. I was brought up to believe those of us who have the capacity should give back to our communities, an inspiring part of my experiences in Armidale. I am from Melbourne and moved to Armidale for family reasons. An academic at UNE teaching French Cinema, I am interested particularly in collaborating with New England artists on projects that produces real results for those less fortunate than myself.
WEBSITE
https://www.une.edu.au/staff-profiles/hass/richard-jones2
films.highcountry@gmail.com
Tori Forsyth in 'The Grit and the Glamour' Richard Jones: Writer, Producer & Director
Image Credit: Cameron Maher
Tori Forsyth in 'The Grit and the Glamour' Richard Jones: Writer, Producer & Director
Image Credit: Cameron Maher