Media students get a taste of Hollywood as Bowen Street transforms into a film set

A lucky group of RMIT’s Bachelor of Communications (Media) and Bachelor of Art students were able to tour the set of ‘Ricky Stanicky’, a film featuring Zac Efron and John Cena.

For a week in March, Bowen Street was transformed into ‘Providence Birthing Center’, complete with emergency signage and ambulance parking as RMIT hosted the production of ‘Ricky Stanicky’.

While some RMIT students were able to spot one of the film’s major stars, Zac Efron, whilst on their way to class, a small group of Media and Art students were able to meet and chat with him, as well as director, Peter Farrelly, and location managers, John Greene and Drew Rhodes.

Peter Farrelly, John Greene and Drew Rhodes chat with Media and Art students.

Mikayla Tebano, a third-year Media student, was a part of the tour that met with Farrelly and listened to his insights into the film industry.

“I also got to chat with the camera department who showed me how the crane and the dolly worked with the camera they were using,” she said.

“I am most interested in the camera department of filmmaking, and I hope to work on a feature film one day.”

Mikayla felt that the opportunity to tour the film set was due to RMIT’s connections to the industry.

“I would say that studying at RMIT is a very hands-on experience, and you get a lot of cool opportunities and introduced to people in the industry,” she said.

“I feel lucky that I get to study here and have access to unique experiences not available to other students.”

A sign reading ‘Providence Birthing Center’ is in front of a building, with an ambulance and a car to the right

Bowen Street was transformed into a Rhode Island hospital, complete with ambulances and an Emergency sign.

Jack Manning, another third-year Media student, highlighted the wealth of knowledge that came from the two location managers, John and Drew, as being his main takeaway from the tour.

“John and Drew were exceedingly interesting and insightful, particularly their knowledge of the Australian film industry,” he said.

“I found their stories about working on Australian productions stood out, as they were closer to home.”

Jack also felt like opportunities such as this are what make RMIT stand out as a place to study film and media.

“Personally, I’ve spent a lot of time trying to get a vast array of experience in every aspect of film and television I can,” he said.

“I believe RMIT’s degrees and certificates in film and media excel because they provide a breadth of experience across all aspects of the industry.”

A crane hangs over Bowen Street with film crew walking underneath it with cameras and equipment

Production at RMIT took place over a week, finishing with a night shoot ending at 5am.

Maddy Weeks, also a third-year Media student, said, amongst other things, a true highlight of hers was seeing Zac Efron in person.

She also said it was inspiring to be on the set of a film, watching professionals working on the set.

“It was really inspiring to see the magic of filmmaking come to life,” she said.

“We got to watch on as the crew navigated around a bustling RMIT, bringing in set pieces and American-style cars to turn Bowen Street into a Rhode Island hospital.”

Maddy has a keen interest in camera operation – an ambition made clearer after speaking with the female camera operators on set.

“I’ve worked as a production assistant and gaffer on sets before, but I feel really inspired to try out new things after speaking with them,” she said.

“It’s such a male-dominated role so it was great to see such female representation on set.”

Three men stand in front of a brick wall. Right: A film camera records a scene on Bowen Street.

Zac Efron and Peter Farrelly discuss a scene on set at RMIT. Right: Students were shown the ropes behind the cameras with Director of Photography, John Brawley.

Maddy echoed her classmates’ sentiments when she said RMIT has so many opportunities for film and media students to gain hands-on experience.

“This industry is so reliant on networking and meeting people who work the jobs you’re interested in,” she said.

“Tours like this provide students with interesting industry insights, and there are fantastic opportunities provided for us all year round.”

Learn more about degrees and certificates in media here.

Story: Sheridan van Gelderen

27 April 2023

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Media students get a taste of Hollywood as Bowen Street transforms into a film set