EarthFest Short Movie: Science Week 2025

EarthFest: My School, My Seismometer. Image: AuSIS

Discover AuSIS’s recent EarthFest: My School, My Seismometer — a National Science Week short-film challenge that blended science, storytelling, and serious creativity. Students were tasked with crafting a three-minute film starring their school, their science teacher, and their trusty NCRIS enabled AuSIS seismometer.

A National Celebration of Student Science and Storytelling

This year, AuSIS invited schools nationwide to participate in EarthFest: My School, My Seismometer, a National Science Week short-film competition designed to inspire creativity and deepen students’ connection with Earth science. Students were challenged to create a three-minute film featuring their school, their science teacher, and their AuSIS seismometer, and the results were extraordinary.

Submissions arrived from every corner of Australia, each offering a unique blend of storytelling, scientific curiosity, and student imagination. Films ranged from rapping seismology songs and detective-style investigations to thoughtful documentaries and creative interpretations of earthquake science.

The Entries

And the Winners?

In a celebration of science and storytelling, all shortlisted films were screened at the AuScope Research Conference 2025 inside the iconic Shine Dome. The audience - many of Australia’s leading geoscientists - was invited to vote for the national winner.

The response was overwhelming.

With unanimous enthusiasm, the assembled scientists selected “Agent Tremor”, created by students from Georgiana Molloy Anglican School in Busselton, WA, as the Overall Winner and AuScope Research Conference Crowd Favourite.

A few weeks before the conference screening, Agent Tremor had already gained attention in Western Australia - the film was featured on WA Regional 7 News during Earth Science Week, where it was praised for its creativity and scientific clarity. Its success with both the public and the scientific community reflects the strength of the students’ storytelling and understanding of seismology.

Students exploring seismology and real data. "It pulled together everything that we had been learning in class; they had to draw on all their knowledge to make the video." – Rebecca Retzlaff, teacher of the winning year 6 class. Image: Sima Mousavi

Sima visited Western Australia shortly after Agent Tremor was announced as the winner and had the opportunity to meet the Busselton students in person. During her visit, the students enjoyed a hands-on seismology workshop, where they explored real data and learned directly from a seismologist — an experience that added even more excitement to their achievement.

"Our principal thought it was fabulous seeing how engaged the students were… it just highlights the importance of having events like Science Week and looking at all different ways to showcase and capture students’ interest."
– Rebecca Retzlaff teacher of the winning year 6 class.

Category Award Winners

EarthFest recognises a range of talents, and we congratulate the following schools for their outstanding achievements:

Ayr State High School, Queensland — Best Seismo-Beats
Georgiana Molloy Anglican School, Busselton WA — Overall Winner & Crowd Favourite
Marian Catholic College, Griffith NSW — Best Quake Questions
Maznod Senior College, Perth WA — Best Earth Science Impact
Parklands High School, Tasmania — Best Tectonic Trio
Rosebud Secondary College, Victoria — Best Seismometer Showcase
Taroona High School, Hobart — Best AuSIS Tour

These awards celebrate creativity, scientific thinking, and the ability to communicate Earth science in engaging and accessible ways.

We extend our warmest congratulations to all participating schools, students, and teachers. The passion and innovation shown this year were truly inspiring, and we look forward to seeing even more incredible stories brought to life in EarthFest 2026.

EarthFest continues to highlight the power of storytelling in science and the remarkable talent of students across Australia.

STORY IN A NUTSHELL
EarthFest invited schools nationwide to create films with their NCRIS enabled AuSIS seismometer, showing how hands-on geoscience tools empower students to explore Earth’s dynamic processes.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Project Lead: Sima Mousavi, AuScope

AUTHORS
Author: Sima Mousavi, AuScope
Editor: Philomena Manifold, AuScope

FURTHER INFORMATION