Meet the 2024 Bright Awards winners

We’re excited to introduce the talented students who took out the top prizes in this year's Bright Awards.

What are the Bright Awards?

The Bright Awards are a Design and Creative Technology competition awarded by Billy Blue College of Design at Torrens University Australia to celebrate emerging talent across secondary schools in Australia.

The Bright Awards recognise up-and-coming designers and tech enthusiasts from Year 10-12, supporting the future of creative arts in high schools across Australia.

The awards are a design and creative technology competition providing students an opportunity to show off their skills and receive highly sought-after recognition and feedback from industry experts. In addition, each category winner is awarded $1000 and a complimentary Creative Cloud licence in partnership with Adobe to help kickstart their creative dreams and careers.

The Bright Awards 2024 featured six categories:

• Architecture and Interiors
• Digital Technology
• Fashion Design, Marketing & Textiles
• Media Arts and Gaming
• Photography
• Visual Arts

The Pinnacle Award in Creativity & Innovation Excellence

Last year we introduced the Pinnacle Award where all category finalists are considered for the Pinnacle Award in Creativity & Innovation Excellence. The accolade is rewarded with a further prize of an incredible 50% scholarship to study Design and Creative Technology with Billy Blue College of Design at Torrens University Australia, and $5000 for their school to continue providing an environment for emerging talent to hone their skills in design and creative technology.

Who are the 2024 Bright Awards category winners?

Architecture & Interiors – Audrey Kennedy, Abbotsleigh

Judge’s comment: “Audrey's project is comprehensively researched, and professionally presented. Right from the beginning of the submission, it is impressively written, with evidence of high-level thinking in experimentation and research. The final project is realised with design industry-level skills in 3D modelling and rendering, making it an exemplar submission. I strongly recommend that Audrey explores a career in the Built Environment - they have a strong set of skills in 3D visualisation, spatial thinking, colour theory and application, and social change. A huge congratulations to Audrey for this project!”

Digital Technology – Rachel Razunguzwa, Springfield Central State High School

Judge’s comment: “Rachel’s submission showed a real depth of user research and human-centric design thinking. Her concept proposes good use of current technologies and gives room for expansion to leverage emerging technologies in IoT, voice and gesture controls, as well as applied consideration for sustainable and ethical materials.”

Commendation: Vivian Chi, Abbotsleigh

Judge’s comment: “Vivian’s website build was of high quality and demonstrated a strong sense of desire for community engagement and environmental care. If she’s looking for a career in UX and Web Design, she’s on the right track.”

Fashion Design, Marketing & Textiles – Luke Suttie, Oxley College

Judge's comment: "Highly original in concept, Luke provided a thorough documentation of his design thinking process. Through concept inspiration, experimentation exercises and problem solving, Luke demonstrated excellent design skills leading to a brilliant final project outcome. Incorporating various advanced technologies alongside handcrafted elements, Luke’s submission was a standout entry in the 2024 Fashion category Bright Awards.”

Photography – Calissa Macare, Our Lady of Mercy College Parramatta

Judge’s comment: “Floral Ice Sculptures is a well-researched, well-crafted body of work featuring flower arrangements frozen in individual blocks of ice. The narrative is simple and consistent yet striking, where each image showcases meticulous composition, lighting technique, and attention to detail, transforming these everyday flowers into timeless pieces of art. Congratulations on your outstanding achievement.”

Visual Arts – Eesha Chand, Arndell Anglican College

Judge’s comment: “The precision, creativity, and meticulous attention to detail in these pieces are truly exceptional. Their talent for bringing ideas to life through both multimedia and handcrafting sets a remarkable standard for creative excellence.”

Media Arts & Gaming – Oscar Fox, Oxley College

Judge’s comment: “The film, created by youth for youth, provided a genuine and relatable perspective, enhancing its potential to resonate with and impact its intended audience. It addressed a real-world problem from a perspective not often explored by young people, offering authenticity and fostering peer-to-peer connections.”

Our 2024 Bright Awards Pinnacle in Creativity & Innovation Excellence Winner

This is only the second year for the Bright Award’s Pinnacle Award in Creativity & Innovation Excellence, which was awarded to Media Arts and Gaming category winner Oscar Fox from Oxley College for their film ‘Limbo.’

The Pinnacle Award judges acknowledged that ‘Limbo’ demonstrated originality by courageously tackling a complex and longstanding issue by using a fresh approach tailored for the youth audience. They added that the peer-to-peer focus and the courage to address a difficult topic further underscored the originality and impact of the project.

Judges remarked that the student's work reflected thorough preparation and planning which resulted in a high-quality final submission with careful stakeholder consideration. They also acknowledged the film’s quality of sound, lighting, direction, and script production.

“The film is evocative, with a strong narrative and messaging,” the judges commented. “Aesthetic choices, such as flashback techniques, shot choices, lighting, and jarring transitions, effectively aligned with and enhanced the dark themes of the subject matter.”

The Pinnacle Award judging panel included Alwyn Hunt from Adobe, Robyn Latimer, Director Learning Services Torrens University Australia, and Agnes Bosanquet, Associate Dean Design and Creative Technology at Torrens University Australia.

Special thanks to our category award judges and academic team: Melissa O’Brien, Russell Ponting, Daniel Coelho, Tony Jan, Dan Staines, Jamal Knight, Andrew Marsh, Tristian Bunn, and Elicia Simon.

We’re excited about the future for all our entrants and look forward to connecting with you all and your teachers into 2025.

Want to enter the Bright Awards?

Find out about next year’s Awards, upcoming open days, and other opportunities by following Billy Blue College of Design's Instagram.