Shortwave is a short film commissioning program from Sydney Opera House, which invites Australian artists to explore their relationship with the screen. Each Shortwave film centres on the interplay between art, performance and screen, showcasing radical, innovative and experimental approaches to filmmaking.

Echo Sleep explores the loss of consent in the media we consume every day. It reflects on how single moments of online content can linger in the mind, shaping emotions, choices and the way we move through the world. The film looks at what happens when those moments are inescapable, when you do not choose what you see, but it still defines you. The short film unfolds mostly in first person, grounded in the repetition of daily routine but slipping into imagined spaces born from monotony. It uses a mix of 3D environments, TouchDesigner, and creative coding to create a sensory, dreamlike experience.

Saigon via Melbourne based visual artist Passive Kneeling (aka Tom Vanderzeil) is part of the backbone of Australia’s music scene. A multidisciplinary artist, he’s worked with both Australian and international artists to extend and enhance the sonic worlds they’re creating on stage through both custom-made and collaged imagery that sticks in the minds of gig goers long after the last note rings out. Previous collaborators include Japan’s Wata Igarashi and Soichi Terada, Berlin’s Etapp Kyle and Charlotte De Witte, as well as Australian festival mainstays Bag Raiders, Ninajirachi, 1tbsp, Vallis Alps, Roza Terenzi and many more. Carefully mapping out and creating visuals to suit the needs and desires of individual artists, Passive Kneeling weaves together dystopian yet hypnotic backdrops, building out landscapes and cities that exist purely for a fleeting moment during a live gig. He’s VJ’d both in Australia and overseas, at festivals like Hard Summer, Field Day, Wildlands and Lollapalooza, captivating music lovers worldwide.