Dr Andrea Benvenuti’s research will focus on the collapse of Britain’s colonial order in Southeast Asia, 1945–63 and will analyse Australia’s responses and attitudes to British colonial and defence policies in Malaya, Singapore and the Borneo states.

It will throw light on how the political, strategic and economic consequences of Britain’s winding down of its empire clearly impacted upon the structuring of international politics in Southeast Asia, reshaping not only Australia’s immediate neighbourhood but also Australia’s relations with the region.

The research aims to highlight the widening gulf between Australian and British interests in the region. It endeavours to make an original contribution to the changing nature of Anglo–Australian relations in the postwar period. It will aid in better understanding of the background of Australia’s current relations with its Southeast Asian neighbours.

Dr Alex Gerbaz's research will focus on the records of Australian Government funding initiatives for independent filmmakers during the 1970s, exemplified by the Experimental Film and Television Fund (EFTF) and the Creative Development Fund (CDF). 

Documentation relating to the two funds will shed light on Australian screen culture during this period. Dr Gerbaz will explore correspondence between recipient filmmakers and the funds, descriptions of the projects, details of applications for funding and policy documents.
 
A thorough analysis of these records will highlight the expectations and outcomes of the funds, and provide an in-depth account of how various individual projects developed. The findings of the project will appeal to film historians and scholars, as well as members of the general public interested in screen culture and arts funding policy in Australia.