Former advertising and television executive Russel Howcroft is the new chair of the Australian Film Television and Radio School.

Senator Mitch Fifield revealed the appointment at today’s ACMA Content Conference in Sydney.

It was in December last year Howcroft resigned from his role as executive general manager at Network Ten Melbourne moving to PwC, and the newly created role of Chief Creative Officer.

The former advertising executive and panellist on the ABC’s The Gruen Transfer will begin his role on July 1st, for a period of three years.

Howcroft has extensive experience in the screen industry. He was the Executive General Manager of Network Ten and has served on a number of boards and foundations which focus on arts and film, including the Australian Film Institute and the Screen Forever Advisory Board.  

In 2016, Russel Howcroft was the founding Chair of Think TV, a collaborative initiative between Australian free-to-air and subscription television broadcasters to promote television’s scale and effectiveness for advertisers across all screens.

Mr Howcroft is currently the inaugural Chief Creative Officer at PwC Australia. He has also served as the Chairman of the Advertising Federation of Australia and Chief Executive Officer of leading advertising agency George Patterson Y&R and been a regular panellist on The Gruen Transfer.

AFTRS is Australia’s leading training institution for the screen arts and broadcast industries. It provides advanced education and training to develop the skills and knowledge of talented individuals to meet the changing needs of Australia’s screen and broadcast industries.