Two TAFE NSW Hunter Street graduates are living their dreams in the screen and media industry and encourage others to follow theirs.

With video traffic growing four-fold from 2017 to 2022[i] and digital and creative skills increasingly being demanded by employers seeking to develop creative content to market their businesses, Rocky Sovechles and Levi Trappel have tapped into the industry at the right time.

Rocky Sovechles studied a Diploma of Screen and Media and graduated in 2018. His TAFE NSW Screen and Media teacher, Hannah Hartley, put him forward for a job on an upcoming thriller on Network 10 titled The Secret She Keeps, working in the camera team.

Mr Sovechles said the days are long and hard but he loves it.

“It’s pretty amazing to get a dream job like this straight out of TAFE NSW and who knows what this will lead to. I am working with people who have been nominated for major awards and have been in the industry for over 20 years.

“I had originally planned to go to university but my old man said why not go to TAFE NSW. I’m so glad I did because it worked out so well. I am where I want to be now that I have graduated.

“I knew deep down that working on films is what I wanted to do but I didn’t consider it to be realistic until my sister in law suggested I look into it as a career, which made me really consider it.”

Levi Trappel’s dream job is to be a visual effects technical director on big budget Hollywood films and he is on his way now that he has been accepted into the prestigious UTS Animal Logic Academy to study a Master of Animation and Visualisation.

Mr Trappel graduated from a Diploma in 3D Animation & Media in 2018 and with the skills and experience he gained from his time at TAFE NSW he is well equipped for further study.

Mr Trappel said he always loved film but he had only ever explored it by meeting up with friends and making fake action films. When he saw the TAFE NSW course, he realised it was perfect for him and he could live out his action movie fantasies for the rest of his life.

“If you love something, go for it, studying is a great experience and it will only boost your confidence. Especially at TAFE NSW, the teachers are so supportive and encouraging.”

The Diploma of Screen and Media can also be studied online, when and where it suits students, via TAFE Digital.

For more detail on TAFE NSW courses, face-to-face or online, visit www.tafensw.com.au or call 131 601.

Media contact: Sarah Lievore, TAFE NSW Media Officer, sarah.lievore1@tafensw.edu.au