Think about your favourite character in a movie you love. What do they wear? What do they look like? Iconic characters have iconic looks, and with a career as a costume designer, you’ll be in charge of creating those looks and bringing characters to life.
You’ll be responsible for designing and creating costumes for characters in films, plays or on stage. You won’t be limited to just clothes, you’ll also strategically think about props, accessories and other character essentials.
You’ll fuse your creative and technical skills working for major stage productions, movie studios, entertainment companies and more.
A career in dance is more than just being on stage. With a degree in dance, you could be a choreographer or dance teacher, as well as a professional dancer.
It’s a physically demanding job that could see you performing on stage in front of a live audience, in movies, on television, on cruise ships, at theme parks and more.
You’ll most likely specialise in a particular style of dance, such as jazz, ballet, modern, tap or ballroom, or you may have expertise in multiple areas. You’ll use your creative and technical skills to express ideas through movement.
⬆︎
28.4%
Fashion, industrial and jewellery designers
*National Skills Commission, 2021 Employment projections for the five years to 2026
⬆︎
17.5%
Visual arts and crafts professionals
*National Skills Commission, 2021 Employment projections for the five years to 2026
Imagine being the one who decides whether it’s zebra or leopard print this year. If you dream of your designs on the catwalks in Paris and Milan, or creating trends for people all over the world, then this trillion-dollar industry could be the career for you.
There’s more to fashion than being a designer. You could also work as a fashion buyer, creative director, stylist, merchandiser or trend forecaster, to name a few. You’ll spend your days researching and forecasting future trends, working closely with executives, marketing managers and other designers, and creating new products.
Visual artists come in all forms. With this degree, you’ll specialise in ceramics, jewellery, painting, photography, printmaking or sculpture and you’ll use these specialised skills to create your own career.
You’ll use your artistic license to convey ideas through your work. You’ll be a creative, out-of-the-box thinker and have innovative ways of seeing, thinking and doing. Your creative and technical skills will come to the forefront of your chosen path, whether that be in traditional art or in arts administration and management.
Costume Design, Dance, Fashion and Visual Arts are industry-focused degrees that prepare you for employment in a variety of positions in a highly dynamic and diverse international industry.
A degree in Costume Design could open up the door to several careers such as a costume designer, costume buyer, costume maker, wardrobe manager or costume technician.
Studying Dance can lead to a variety of jobs, including professional dancer, performing arts teacher, cabaret artist, community dance artist and private dance teacher.
A degree in Fashion can turn into a career as a fashion designer, product developer, garment technician, production assistant or fashion design assistant for example.
Studying Visual Arts can lead to occupations as a visual artist, arts and culture development officer, art gallery administrative officer, visual arts technician or illustrator.
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Studying visual arts at Flinders connects you with lecturers that all work within the arts industry and are highly skilled in their practice. Having close connections with these lecturers and being able to discuss ideas and projects with them is an invaluable part of the course. Being able to learn from your lecturers in studio spaces that allow for constant strengthening of practical and technical skills is extremely beneficial.
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Our incredible teaching and research staff within the costume design, dance, fashion and visual arts sector are experts in their professions and well-connected to industry.
“Learning to deal with ambiguity, being curious and questioning everything – that’s what artists do. I’m interested in fostering open and inclusive learning spaces for our students to develop a sense of who they are, to take risks and to make the work they need to make.”
Gregory Ackland is a practising artist and arts educator with 17 years of teaching experience in the visual and creative arts. He is a passionate advocate for the value of creativity, innovation and culture.
Gregory is interested in digital media practices, conceptual photography and the moving image. He has facilitated workshops, presented papers and collaborated with colleagues at Coventry University, UK and Deakin University, AUS on topics including contemporary Chinese photo media, the role of photography in a media economy, arts careers and new media practices.
As the Principal Lecturer for Visual Arts he provides academic leadership for staff and students, develops partnerships with industry and maintains an active teaching role. His teaching focus includes arts funding, creative entrepreneurship, career pathways and cultural critique.
He has judged a number of arts awards, including the AIPP Contemporary Art Photography prize, delivered workshops for the Art Gallery of South Australia and regularly sits on arts funding assessment panels. Gregory is a represented artist with Hill Smith Gallery, South Australia.
“Dance was always something that I was drawn to for self-expression but I had no idea where to begin to turn it into a career. Start somewhere like a tertiary college? That’s how I launched and I haven’t looked back. My career covers all matter of creative processes and performance formats involved in contemporary dance performance and all have informed how I teach and what is critical in the exchange.”
Peter’s professional career commenced in Canberra at Human Veins Dance Theatre. He then spent the next twenty years performing and collaborating in leading contemporary dance companies including Dance North, Australian Dance Theatre, Chrissie Parrott Dance Company, Taipei Crossover and Leigh Warren and Dancers.
In that time, he has worked with choreographers/directors such as Graeme Watson, Nanette Hassel, Douglas Wright, Jean-Pierre Perreault and Per Jonsson and has performed lead roles in Glen Tetley’s “Pierrot Lunaire” and William Forsythe’s “Enemy in the Figure”.
Peter has taught extensively in contemporary dance studies and received choreographic grants from ARTSA and the Australia Council.
"While Fashion industry processes remain intrinsically the same as they have been for many years, the change on how Fashion is perceived by wearers and viewers continues to change and morph over time, always presenting new and exciting challenges and directions."
After completing her Bachelor of Fashion (Honours), Helen worked in the fashion industry in Melbourne for 15 years. Her final role before moving to SA was the Creative Director of Davenport Industries.
With a portfolio of epic projects such as a fashion parade in a Boeing 747 as it circled Sydney for the launch of Virgin Underwear, Helen began teaching at TAFE SA in 2005 and became the Principal Lecturer in 2011.
Here she was instrumental to the development of the unique Bachelor of Creative Arts (Costume Design) and the Bachelor of Creative Arts (Fashion).
Helen wants students to realise how broad and multi-layered the fashion and costume industries are, "There are so many opportunities for employment in Adelaide in both areas and the potential is growing year after year.
"Not only does SA have some of the biggest fashion and clothing houses in Australia, the theatre, film and festival scene is alive and well."
Living and studying overseas presents you with the unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the local culture while continuing your tertiary study at one of Flinders University’s 70+ overseas partner universities.
Why wait until you graduate to see the world? Let our program offer you the educational adventure of a lifetime.
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