Russel Howcroft.
The Federal Government has appointed Russel Howcroft as chair of the Australian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS) council, where he will serve for three years.
Howcroft will succeed academic Julianne Schultz in the position. Other members of the council include Darren Dale (deputy chair), Professor Robyn Ewing, Kate Dundas, Katrina Sedgwick, AFTRS CEO Neil Peplow, David Balfour (staff representative) and Adam Boys (student representative).
Currently chief creative officer at PwC Australia and a former EGM of Network Ten, Howcroft has served on a number of boards and foundations, including the Australian Film Institute and the Screen Forever advisory board.
The regular Gruen Transfer panellist is also a former chairman of the Advertising Federation of Australia and CEO of advertising agency George Patterson Y&R.
Howcroft was also the founding chair of Think TV, a collaborative initiative between Australian free-to-air and subscription broadcasters to promote TV’s scale and effectiveness for advertisers.
"As a leader in the creative industries, he has a strong understanding of working in the media and creative entrepreneurship in both the private and public sectors which will be invaluable for the Council," said Minister for Communications and the Arts Mitch Fifield in a statement.
Howcroft will commence as AFTRS council chair on July 1.