The ACTF acts as a catalyst, bringing together the industry's resources and complementing the work of those already involved in children's programming. Its role is to:

• initiate development and production of innovative television programmes and concepts
  provide development finance to writers, directors, and producers for script, programme, and series development
• undertake production-oriented research and evaluation
• provide an advisory service to programme makers
• market programmes in Australia and overseas
• develop educational materials to support ACTF programmes
• promote ACTF programmes in the community

This organisation's major emphasis has been on the development of children's drama programmes for educational and commercial purposes. The ACTF has invested in the script development and production of telemovies, mini series, and one-off dramas, as well as encouraged writers, producers, and directors of the Australian film and television industry to become involved in production for children. Examples of such programmes include "Crash Zone", "Round the Twist", and "Legacy of the Silver Shadow". ACTF also produced the live action feature film "Yolngu Boy", which tells the story of 3 Aboriginal young people who grapple with the difficulties of growing up in one of the oldest living cultures while meeting the demands of contemporary society. As of this writing (June 2007), the ACTF's latest production is "Mortified", a 26-part, live-action, children's comedy-drama series, described as the tale of a girl "on the brink of adolescence...[who's] got a lot to deal with: a changing body, a flood of hormones, relentless judgement by her peers, even perhaps the stirrings of a first, unrequited crush....Mortified is a young girl's journey towards self-acceptance."

To launch this process, as part of a commitment to the World Summit on Media for Children, ACTF's International Training and Development scheme sought to empower producers and broadcasters to provide quality content in children's programmes, particularly in developing countries. Seven professional development workshops were conducted over that time; regional and international events for children's media practitioners were also supported. Although there was a strong emphasis on content, directing and general production for children's programmes were also a focus. As participants in these workshops, broadcasters in Mongolia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, China, Brunei, and other countries worked to develop new programmes for children and help their producers gain a better understanding of the needs and wants of their child audiences.

ACTF is also involved with a range of community groups as part of an effort to extend the use of ACTF programmes. Face-to-face encounters are part of this strategy: ACTF provides educational workshops in all states and territories. Books and teaching materials accompany all ACTF programmes, which are also available on video. ACTF has also developed a Resource Centre of books, periodicals, and tapes on children and the media; it is designed for use by researchers, producers, tertiary students, and academics, but is open to all members of the public. (These holdings may also be searched and/or accessed online).

The ACTF website is another key tool for sharing information. For example, the "Teaching Materials" link in the Learning Centre page on this site provides lesson plans that have been developed around ACTF's productions. In addition, connections are made here between the different media in which ACTF works - each television programme has its own website, which might feature trivia, free e-cards, educational sections for teachers, and character profiles.

Along these lines, ACTF believes that entertaining media can be an effective teaching and learning tool. It has created the educational multi-media construction tool-set "Kahootz" to be used in schools by primary and secondary students across a range of key learning areas. The tool-set gives children the power to create complex narratives, puzzles, and presentations in a 3-dimensional world. Teacher tools and classroom examples can be found on the Kahootz website.

Advocacy is another core ACTF focus; the organisation actively engages in debate on issues concerning Australian children's program content. It prepares submissions to regulatory bodies and government, and seeks to inform key decision-makers.

The ACTF acts as a funding body for other children's television producers, offering both script development funding and production investment. The aim is to stimulate greater activity in the development and production of high-quality television programmes for children. The programme provides development finance for producers, script writers, script editors, and consultants, as well as funds for budget preparation.

Children, Youth, Education.