Play School Talks: The Power of Play in Pop Culture

Anthony Semann is an early childhood educator, author, and co-founder of Semann & Slattery, a national consultancy supporting early years practice and leadership across Australia. With over 35 years’ experience, Anthony is recognised for his work in play-based learning, pedagogical leadership, and building equitable, relationship-focused education environments. He regularly collaborates with educators, government agencies, and communities to translate research into practical change. Anthony is passionate about the power of play and storytelling to shape identity, nurture connection, and drive social transformation for children and families. He recently authored his first children’s book with his colleague Louise Dorrat and illustrator Heidi Upward called ‘I am me, you are you’.

Professor Louise Paatsch is the Deputy Director of Deakin University's Strategic Research Centre in Education - Research for Educational Impact (REDI), and Deputy Director and Chief Investigator at the Australian Research Council's Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child.

Her research focuses on children’s language, digital play, and pretend play abilities, with a strong focus on children’s social use of language in diverse contexts. She also investigates teachers' talk patterns and intentional teaching practices in supporting children's language and play abilities. Louise also works with teachers and educators to explore their own practices as reflective researchers to support positive outcomes for children and their families.

David Kleeman is SVP of Global Trends for Dubit, a research firm and games studio, and founder of consultancy Playvangelist. As a strategist, analyst, author, speaker and connector, he has led the children’s media industry in developing sustainable, kid-friendly practices for 35+ years. David’s perspective is that for all that changes, children’s development and needs remain constant.

David is advisory board chair to the worldwide children’s TV festival PRIX JEUNESSE and on the board of the US Children’s Media Association. In 2023, he was in inducted into the Children’s and Family Emmy Silver Circle, for 25+ years of service.

Emily Sexton is Director of Curatorial, Programming and Education for ACMI, Australia’s museum of screen culture. Her ongoing interest in the radical and relevant aligns strongly with her current role, in a future-focused, vibrant museum whose audience is majority under 35.

Emily has a leading practice for storytelling in new forms - across the performing arts, digital, broadcast, visual arts, literature and ideas. From 2018-2023 she was Artistic Director for Arts House, Melbourne’s home for contemporary performance and experimental practice. In this role Emily oversaw structural and systemic change to Arts House at a programming, leadership, staffing and infrastructure level to address racial and disability justice in the arts. Previous roles include Head of Programming for The Wheeler Centre for Books, Writing and Ideas (2015-17), Artistic Director of Next Wave Festival (2010-14) and Creative Producer for Melbourne Fringe (2008-10).

Emily is a Sidney Myer Creative Fellow, alumni of multiple Creative Australia Leadership programs and serves as a trustee of the Malcolm Robertson Foundation.