Sydney’s first intake of JEDI Academy filmmakers have begun their training in 2021 thanks to a partnership between the NSW Government and the makers of Star Wars.
The partnership with Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) will create hundreds of jobs at the new skills hub for post-production, visual and digital effects (PDV) at Fox Studios.
Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney Stuart Ayres said the Government’s partnership with the leading international visual effects company would further enhance the State’s reputation as a base for filmmaking.
“Over the past year, our COVID-19 response has made NSW the envy of the international screen industry and put us ‘galaxies’ ahead of other global locations as a filming and production base,” Mr Ayres said.
“Through Investment NSW we will continue to work with industry to identify and develop new opportunities, such as the PDV-based JEDI Academy, that upskill practitioners with versatile digital skills that bolster our capacity for the jobs of the future.”
Under a Skills Funding Commitment the NSW Government and ILM have agreed to each co-invest up to $6 million in training, helping to create hundreds of jobs over five years in the growing PDV industry that includes post-production services like visual effects and animation.
Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education Geoff Lee said the partnership with the leading global company represented a major boost to the PDV industry in NSW.
“Alongside this partnership, we are establishing an accredited course to be registered with the Australian Skills Quality Authority, which will support continued training of our next generation of highly skilled workers in the industry,” Mr Lee said.
Luke Hetherington, Executive in Charge, Singapore & Sydney studios said that ILM was delighted to be underway with the JEDI Academy training program in Sydney.
“The NSW Government has been passionate about this initiative from the beginning, which helps us launch careers for a diverse range of local candidates, and help grow our studio's capability,” Mr Hetherington said.
ILM will work together to facilitate the addition of the accredited PDV qualification to the NSW Skills List within two years of signing the agreement. This will make the course both publicly available and eligible for delivery under the Government’s Smart and Skilled program.
ILM is an international motion picture visual effects company that was founded by director George Lucas in 1975 to film Star Wars. The partnership with the NSW Government was finalised in 2019.
Stuart Ayres
Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western
Geoff Lee
Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education