Student spotlight - Screen and media

15 May 2025

NMTAFE’s Advanced Diploma of Screen and Media (Animation & VFX) students have developed an impressive animation for the Tasmanian Land Conservancy (TLC)(opens in a new tab) called ‘WildTracker’. (opens in a new tab)  

Lecturer Travis Badge said the project was originally brought in by one of the Advanced Diploma students, Charlotte Campbell, whose family is based in Tasmania.  

“It was a written brief to begin with and the students worked really hard to create an animation that resonated with Tasmanian landowners and met the client’s needs.” 

“This collaboration with TLC is a great example of how this course is so hands-on, where students get the opportunity to work with ‘real’ clients, and they have created something that they can be proud of and include in their portfolio at the completion of their studies,” Travis said.  

TLC is a for-purpose, science and community-based organisation that protects nature on private land in Tasmania. They also work with hundreds of other landholders across the state through initiatives like the Land for Wildlife, Gardens for Wildlife, and WildTracker citizen science programs. 

TLC Conservation Ecologist and WildTracker Coordinator, Dr Glen Blain, said the WildTracker tool(opens in a new tab) provides a digital platform where landholders who use motion-sensing camera traps to monitor wildlife on their property can upload, tag, and share the photos that they collect.  

“The data they contribute helps us build a better understanding of where species occur, how many individuals there might be, and how these things might be changing. 

“Species identification is central to WildTracker, so it is important that the animals in the video are instantly recognisable, capturing their key physical features, distinctive sounds, and natural movements,” Glen said. 

“The team did an incredible job bringing the brief to life. The video feels like an adventure through Tasmania’s wilderness and countryside.” 

NMTAFE screen and media student, Charlotte Campbell, said she had learnt some valuable lessons from the animation project.  

“Initially, there was some ups and downs, nerves and frustration because working on some of the scenes was harder than others, but to get through that challenge and then receive the positive feedback from TLC, it was so rewarding. I am glad we could meet their expectations and standards,” Charlotte said.  

Daniel Johnson, who composed the music for the animation, said he was proud to be part of the collaboration.  “It was a lot of fun, and I am really happy we were given this opportunity to work on this project,” Daniel said. 

 TLC hopes that with the WildTracker tool and animation created by NMTAFE students, this will motivate Tasmanian landholders to be more motivated to take actions that protect and care for the wildlife, particularly rare species like the eastern quoll and eastern barred bandicoot.