John Smithies joined the Cultural Development Network in 2005 and continues to develop its role as a network of local government arts managers and cultural policy planners. John is an artist, arts programmer and producer. He studied at the Tasmanian School of Art, South Australian School of Art, Monash University and the Academy of Fine Art Karlsruhe, Germany. From 1992, John was Director of the State Film Centre of Victoria with prime responsibility for developing and opening the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) at Federation Square, Melbourne, as the first CEO in March 2002.