Live Film
Creative Lab

4 teams. 4 stories. Zero safety net. A high-intensity, two-day live cinema workshop at the St. Kilda Film Festival — where four pre-formed filmmaking teams devise, shoot, and perform interconnected short live-broadcast films entirely in real-time.

This is not a standard festival entry. There is no editing suite, no safety cut, no second take. Every camera movement, every performance, and every edit is broadcast live to an audience as it happens. The result is a seamless 40-minute collaborative narrative where the end of one team's story provides the starting point for the next.

Led by HERE & NOW's Michael Beets, the Live Film Creative Lab is an opportunity to gain concentrated, hands-on experience in filmmaking from conception through to live delivery — and a chance to jump headfirst into the thrilling and unforgiving world of live cinema.

Four pre-formed teams work across two intensive days to create four interconnected short films. The films are structurally linked — the final moment of one team's story feeds directly into the opening of the next, creating a single coherent 40-minute live narrative from four distinct creative visions.

Everything is live. Every camera move, every editorial decision, every performance beat happens in the broadcast window. The audience watches the work being made in real time. The tension between preparation and spontaneity — between the plan and what actually happens — is the experience.

All technical equipment is provided. Teams bring their creative chemistry and a willingness to commit fully to the conditions of live cinema.

We are looking for teams of 3–4 people who function like a single unit. Prior filmmaking experience is welcome but not required — what matters is creative instinct, collaborative energy, and a genuine appetite for working under pressure. Because equipment is fully provided, the selection process focuses on team chemistry and creative ambition rather than technical resources.

Successful teams will be required to pay a $30 team participation fee and will be available for a pre-session briefing with program coordinator Michael Beets of HERE & NOW in the week prior to the event.

Applications close at 11:59 pm on Sunday 24 May 2026. Successful applicants will be contacted from 24 May 2026. Apply via the EOI link below — and come prepared to make something that only exists once.