Australian Directors Guild (ADG)

Overview

The Australian Directors Guild (ADG) is the professional association for directors working in film, television, documentary, theatre, and new media in Australia. Founded in 1968, the organisation has approximately 700 members. It is registered as a union of employees (Australian Directors Guild Limited, ADGL) with the Fair Work Commission, with registration dated 4 March 2015. The current President is Darren Ashton and the Executive Director is Sophie Harper.

Unlike the Directors Guild of America (DGA), the ADG does not hold collective bargaining agreements with producers. It operates through advocacy, professional development, and the publication of recommended rate cards and standard agreement templates. Its most significant industrial instrument is the ADG Scripted Series Rate Card 2025-26, the first comprehensive update to directors' fees and conditions in over 25 years.

The ADG engages with Screen Australia, the ABC, commercial networks, streaming platforms, and state screen agencies on policy issues affecting directors. These include creative rights, crediting practices, residual and royalty structures, and the director's role through post-production and distribution.

Notable Members and Leadership

President Darren Ashton, co-creator and director of the comedy series Austin, was elected to succeed Rowan Woods in 2025. Ashton has been vocal about the challenges facing Australian directors, noting that directors are "often underappreciated" and "frequently" carry the burden of solving production problems "for less pay than other crew." The board includes Secretary Victoria Thaine, Treasurer Michael Rymer, and Ordinary Director Daniel Nettheim. Executive Director Sophie Harper has led the organisation since 2023, representing the ADG at meetings on streaming quotas, authorship, royalties, and rights.

The ADG's approximately 700 members include many of Australia's most prominent screen directors. George Miller won the 2024 ADG Award for Best Direction of a Feature Film ($1.5M+) for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, tying with Paul Middleditch and Hamish Bennett for Uproar. Robert Connolly (Paper Planes, Underground: The Julian Assange Story) received the 2024 Cecil Holmes Award for extraordinary career contribution. Dylan River (Mystery Road: Origin, Thou Shalt Not Steal) received the inaugural Baz Luhrmann Pathfinder Award for carving out a unique creative path. Other notable members include Baz Luhrmann (Elvis, Moulin Rouge!), Peter Weir, and Jane Campion, though Campion's primary guild affiliation is with the DGA.

The ADG has faced financial challenges in recent years, with rising costs and declining sponsorship and grants leading the organisation to launch an Australian Cultural Fund campaign to raise tax-deductible donations. The guild has received no operational funding beyond membership fees since 2020.

Membership: Fees, Tiers, and Eligibility

ADG membership has five tiers. All new memberships are subject to ADG board approval. Full and Retired memberships require Australian citizenship or permanent residency.

Full members receive voting rights, awards eligibility, access to the ADG rate card and standard agreements, professional development programs, mentoring, and industrial advice. Associate and Student members receive most benefits except voting and awards eligibility.

How Eligibility Actually Works in Practice

The ADG's membership system is credit-based rather than employment-triggered, reflecting its status as a professional association rather than a traditional union. Here is how it works in practice:

Full (Established) membership. You apply with evidence of 2+ directing credits (feature, TV, online, TVC, or games) and minimum 2 hours of credited screen time, plus a resume and reference letter from a screen industry practitioner. The board reviews applications and approves or rejects based on whether your credits meet the threshold. This is the standard path for working directors with established careers.

Full (Emerging) membership. For directors with 1+ short film, proof-of-concept, or music video screened publicly on a recognised platform or festival, and minimum 20 minutes of credited screen time. This tier provides full membership benefits at a reduced fee ($275 vs. $550), making it accessible for early-career directors who have not yet accumulated feature or television credits.

Associate membership. Open to industry professionals in any area of film and TV production, and those who support the ADG's objectives. This tier does not require directing credits, making it accessible to producers, writers, editors, and other industry professionals who want ADG community access. Associate members cannot vote or compete for ADG awards.

The citizenship requirement. Full and Retired memberships require Australian citizenship or permanent residency. This reflects the ADG's role in Australian content certification and its focus on supporting Australian directors. International directors working on Australian productions can join as Associates but cannot become Full members without Australian citizenship or permanent residency.

Board approval. All new memberships are subject to ADG board approval, which means applications are reviewed individually rather than processed automatically. This creates a quality control mechanism but also means the application process can take time.

Benefits Breakdown

The ADG provides professional, industrial, and community benefits, but its financial benefits are more limited than those of US or UK unions because the ADG does not hold collective bargaining agreements with producers. There is no ADG pension or health plan; Australian directors access healthcare through Medicare and retirement through personal superannuation.

Rate card and standard agreements. The ADG Scripted Series Rate Card 2025-26 is the organisation's most significant industrial document, setting minimum fee bands for episodic directors across four budget tiers. While the rate card is a recommended standard rather than a legally binding minimum, Screen Australia's Terms of Trade require funding recipients to pay at least guild minimum rates where applicable, giving the rate card practical force on funded productions. The rate card includes provisions for pre-production periods, paid overtime, director's cut editing time, post-production involvement, and revenue sharing.

Creative rights advocacy. The ADG advocates for directors' creative rights including crediting practices, the director's role through post-production, and residual and royalty structures. The rate card establishes that directors are entitled to 5% of additional revenue paid to the producer from license fees after the initial license period expires, proportional to episodes directed, and 50% of retransmission rights.

Awards and peer recognition. The ADG presents annual awards across 19 categories, voted on by members. Awards provide peer recognition and can boost a director's profile in the Australian industry. Special awards include the Cecil Holmes Award for career contribution and the Baz Luhrmann Pathfinder Award for unique creative paths.

Professional development. The ADG provides mentoring programs, professional development events, and craft training for members. These are particularly valuable for emerging directors building careers in Australia's concentrated screen industry, where access to experienced directors can be limited.

Industrial advice. The ADG provides industrial advice on contracts and creative rights, helping members negotiate with producers and protect their interests. While the ADG cannot enforce contracts the way a union with collective bargaining agreements can, its advice and standard agreement templates give directors reference points for negotiation.

International guild alliances. The ADG maintains relationships with Directors UK, the Directors Guild of Canada, and the DGA, allowing it to benchmark Australian standards against international best practice and advocate for Australian directors working internationally. The rate card's international band recommends dollar-for-dollar parity with relevant DGA (or equivalent) rates.

ADG Scripted Series Rate Card 2025-26

The ADG Scripted Series Rate Card 2025-26 is the organisation's most significant industrial document. Released in late 2025 after 18 months of consultation with members and international guild allies (Directors UK, Directors Guild of Canada, DGA), it sets minimum fee bands for episodic directors across four budget tiers: low budget, mid budget, high budget, and international.

Key provisions of the rate card:

• Fees are calculated at approximately 3% of a production's budget, regardless of genre
• The international band recommends dollar-for-dollar parity with relevant DGA (or equivalent) rates
• Directors are entitled to a pre-production period no shorter than the duration of the shoot
• Paid overtime applies to any scheduled shoot day exceeding 12 hours
• Pro-rata daily fee for any additional 6th or 7th shoot days
• Minimum 3 days of unimpeded editing time per half-hour episode, 5 days per one-hour episode for a Director's Cut
• Directors receive paid creative involvement in all aspects of post-production
• Directors are entitled to 5% of additional revenue paid to the producer from license fees after the initial license period expires, proportional to episodes directed
• Pilot or "setup" directors receive a payment per episode of any subsequently produced series
• 50% of retransmission rights, whether working as a lender or employee director

The rate card applies to scripted series, limited series, and mini-series across drama, comedy, and children's programming. The ADG has indicated that developing equivalent rate cards for factual and documentary directors is a priority for the coming year, along with reviewing feature film agreements.

ADG Awards

The ADG presents annual awards across 19 categories recognising directorial achievement in Australian screen production. Awards are voted on by ADG members and represent peer recognition. Categories include:

• Best Direction of a Feature Film (Budget $1.5M or over)
• Best Direction of a Feature Film (Budget under $1.5M)
• Best Direction of a Feature Documentary
• Best Direction of a Debut Feature
• Best Direction of a Drama Series Episode
• Best Direction of a Comedy Series Episode
• Best Direction of a Miniseries Episode
• Best Direction of a Documentary Series Episode or One-Off
• Best Direction of a Short Film
• Best Direction of a Student Film
• Best Direction of an Animation
• Best Direction of a Commercial Advertisement
• Best Direction of Commercial Content
• Best Direction of a Music Video
• Best Direction of an Interactive or Immersive Project
• Best Direction in Online Longform
• Best Direction in Online Shortform
• The Esben Storm Award for Best Direction of a Children's Series Episode
• Best Direction of a Short Documentary

Two special awards are also presented: the Cecil Holmes Award for extraordinary career contribution, and the Baz Luhrmann Pathfinder Award for a director who has carved out a unique creative path. The 2024 Cecil Holmes Award was presented to Robert Connolly, and the inaugural Baz Luhrmann Pathfinder Award went to Dylan River.

At the 2024 ADG Awards, George Miller won Best Direction of a Feature Film ($1.5M+) for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, tying with Paul Middleditch and Hamish Bennett for Uproar. The 2023 awards received 329 entries across 20 categories, judged by 74 judges.

Australian Screen Industry Context

Australia's screen industry is supported by the Producer Offset (16.5% for television, 30% for feature films with qualifying Australian content), the PDV Offset (30% for post, digital, and visual effects work), and the Location Offset (16.5% for large-budget international productions). State incentives add further support. Directors working on both international productions shooting in Australia and domestic productions funded through Screen Australia and state agencies fall within the ADG's constituency.

The ADG's relationships with Screen Australia, AFTRS, and state screen agencies give it input into policy decisions affecting directors, including funding criteria, training programs, and content standards. The Guild has also been active in advocating for directors' rights in the context of AI and algorithm-driven platform distribution, signing onto international statements on the protection of cultural diversity.

What Filmmakers Should Know

For international productions hiring Australian directors, the ADG rate card and standard agreement templates provide a reference point for Australian director expectations on fees, creative rights, and working conditions. Producers should note that the ADG rate card is a recommended standard, not a legally binding minimum, but Screen Australia's Terms of Trade require funding recipients to pay at least guild minimum rates where applicable.

For Australian directors, ADG membership provides professional community, awards eligibility, industrial advice on contracts and creative rights, and access to the rate card and standard agreements. The Guild's mentoring programs and professional development events are particularly relevant for emerging directors building careers in Australia's concentrated screen industry.

See Also

For the Australian performers union working alongside directors on Australian productions, see MEAA in this directory. For the Australian screenwriters association, see Australian Writers' Guild (AWG) in this directory. For the Australian screen editors association, see Australian Screen Editors (ASE) in this directory.