About the Project

HAVE YOU GOT THAT RIGHT?

Have You Got That Right? is an innovative series of videos answering important human rights questions quickly, clearly and in a way that won’t put you to sleep.

The project will be broken into a number of 10-episode series, each with a different theme. Series one blends comedy with serious academic content, while series two will be interview-based.

We started out planning to make simple videos of our academics answering human rights questions. However, more and more people offered to bring their expertise on board to help us pro bono, and the series grew from there. By the end of series one, we will have benefited from thousands of hours of pro bono work from industry professionals as well as our team of writers, crew members and actors. You can read about our key people below.

What’s the aim of the series?

Knowledge is power, and these videos will empower people to better understand how human rights protect the most vulnerable people.

Research in Australia and elsewhere has showed that human rights laws have a transformative impact on vulnerable groups such as the homeless, people with a disability and children to name a few. However, research also shows that many people do not fully understand their rights. That’s where these videos come in.

Instead of simply trying to explain each human right, this series puts rights in context by referring to topical issues and debates. So, instead of asking “what is the right to non-discrimination?” we are asking “is there a right to marriage equality?” Instead of asking “What is the right to privacy?”, we are asking “do I have a right to be free from government surveillance?”, and so on.

This more engaging approach draws on our experience of “applied learning”: by putting information in context, we make it easier to understand and use. We aim to make it possible for anyone who watches these videos to join in a conversation on discrimination or privacy or asylum or prisoners’ rights, to name a few.
We aim to produce videos covering as many international rights as possible.

If you’d like to help us achieve that goal by making a donation, you can get more information here.

THE PROJECT TEAM

Robert Hall - Creative Director

A long time supporter of human rights, Robert was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time and was asked to be involved in producing content for the Castan Center. Robert developed the writing and production teams, co-ordinates with our amazing external partners Jumbla Graphics and “The Composers”, and is vital in creating fertile ground for the whole team to work on.

His aim: Create short films about human rights that are fresh, boundary pushing, entertaining and informative.

Marius Smith - Director

Marius manages and coordinates the Castan Centre's various programs. He is particularly interested in exploring how technology can be used to educate people about human rights. Before commencing at the Castan Centre, Marius worked in aid and development in Sudan, Eritrea and the Phiilippines. He has also worked as a commercial lawyer and has an LLM in International and Comparative Law.

Sarah Joseph - Director

Professor Sarah Joseph is the Director of the Castan Centre for Human Rights Law. She has taught human rights law in Australia, the Netherlands, the US and New Zealand, and has conducted training programs in Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Burma. Her research interests include the intersections between human rights issues and terrorism laws, regulation of the global economy, pop culture, and the media (including social media). You can find her on Twitter at @profsarahj

Andre Dao - Production Assistant / Director

André Dao is a writer of fiction and non-fiction. From 2009 to 2014 he was Editor-in-Chief of Right Now, a human rights media organisation, and is now Editor-at-large. In 2011 he was a finalist for the Australian Human Rights Commission's Young People's Medal.

Elle Marsh - Production Assistant

Elle Marsh is a Media & Communications graduate from RMIT, with a background in film, radio & philosophy. She has worked with community arts & media organisations including Syn, Triple R & Right Now as well as shooting documentaries in Australia & overseas.

Our writing team

Our dedicated team of writers have devoted hours of their own time to this project, most of them are Monash students, graduates or alumni from the law and journalism faculties.

Season one and two writers: Michael Adams, Sam Blashki, Chris Eales, Asher Hirsh, Joel Lazar, Frances Vinall, Elizabeth Yick.

Season three writers: Cassie Axon, Anika Baset, Jeremie Bracka, Chris Eales, Frances Vinall, Elizabeth Yick.

The Composers - Music

"The Composers" are a collective of film and television composers who operate from a large shared studio complex in Camperdown, Sydney. Whilst made up of independent practitioners, they often pool their talent and vast musical resources to provide a comprehensive music production service. More info at www.thecomposers.com.au