An interview ...... with Steve Vizard1 Alex Mathey, Crown Limited Steve Vizard is a graduate in Arts and Law from the University of Melbourne and practised as a commercial lawyer for ten years, both in Australia and overseas, and as a partner in a major city law firm. only socks in the world that fall up. So I was flogging those big time and occasion­ ally I would race back for a lecture or for an Until recently, Steve was Chairman of Yes, not the publication more the show ... I exam and I did zero study that year but I Granada Media Australia, a company which was in the group that really initiated all of was writing as well, and in fact, I wrote a represents the UK media giant Granada’s that. review for a theatre restaurant that was interests in Australia. In Australia, Granada closed down. That ran for about seven or has produced shows including “The Farm”, Did you enjoy that time of eight months and paid some money as “Sea Change”, “Fast Forward”, “Full your life? well, so I was always writing even while Frontal”, “Jimeoin”, “Big Girls Blouse”, Yes.lt was a very productive time in terms of I was being an underwear salesman “Simone De Beauvoir’s Babies” and “Siam theatre in the 10 year period when I was studying law. Sunset” and has won numerous AFI, Logie there ... The D Gen people were after me ... and Australian Writers’ Guild Awards. then there was Ian McFadyen, Mark Mitchell, Peter Moon, Libby Gore, Glenn Robbins ... a Steve Vizard is currently President of the really quite extraordinary number of writers Council of Trustees for the National Gallery and performers who were all coming of Victoria, as well as the Chairman of the through at the same time. It was pretty rich Victorian Major Events Company. time for theatre, review and satire. Steve is the former President of the Screen Producers’ Association of Australia, the Did you ever consider doing peak industry and employer body repre­ something other than law? senting the interests of film, television Oh yes. I didn’t understand what the law and advertising producers in Australia. was. To be honest ... I didn’t actually understand that it led to a job. In fact, I only started applying for articles about a What made you go to taw month or two before I finished the course. I school? didn’t connect it with a real job and ... I When I was at school, one of my best didn’t realise it was real life, so I just sent friends was a bloke called Leo Berkeley the letters out not expecting a reply and and his dad is Hartog Berkeley, who is a got a couple of interviews and went for it. QC. I remember in first form we went to a County Court and I thought I can’t believe Were you a committed you get paid for doing this; it looks like you student? are arguing, it looks really good fun. So in While I was sort of half studying, I was an indirect way, watching Hartog got me doing a lot of writing. I got an Arts Council interested in the law. I thought I wouldn’t grant to write poetry actually so I wrote mind doing that. poetry and I wrote a play and so half of me was thinking this isn’t a bad life as I can do Did any members of your How long were you in private a bit of writing on the side. The good thing practice? family have an involvement about writing is we can do it anywhere, so I About 10 years. with the law? figured I can do the law and I can keep Not really ... My grandmother was a noted writing at the same time, which is in fact You worked at Deacons - Is shoplifter and my brother was a car thief... what I kept doing. ... I was earning money that where you did articles? no, that’s not true. No, not really they just as a writer whilst I was doing my course. I Yes. It was called Weigall & Crowther when basically said, “do anything you want”. even wrote for TV shows such as The Don I started there and then it became Sly & They were amazed that I actually wanted to Lane Show. Weigall and then Deacons. Having said study anything at all, let alone law.... Did you prefer performing to that a lot of the people that I started with are still there and a fine firm it is, too. Did you enjoy going to law writing? school? Performing was fun but really what I liked Did you work anywhere else? Well, strictly speaking, I probably didn’t go doing was the writing. So I was always Herbert Geer & Rundle - I was a partner to law school. I didn’t excel in the atten­ writing even when I was doing anything there, I got head hunted to go to the CRA, dance percentage department, but I loved else. In fact, so lazy was I in my last year of as it was then, legal department. I went it. I went to [University of] Melbourne and law I got a full-time job as underwear there to sort of head up their technology we had fantastic lecturers ... apparently. salesman for Holeproof. I had a country run legal area and hadn’t been there for more than 2 weeks and they decided to close I understand that you were which meant I had to go up to the Riverina down their entire legal department. Fortun­ involved with the Law Revue? and all through Gippsland selling Hole­ proof underwear and computer socks. The ately, they decided to keep me on so I got

7 the Young Lawyers’ Section and the high into management and got involved in ourselves as a sort of bearer of rights in a international negotiations and worked society like we are entitled to do this, we number of young people leaving the law. mainly in Germany and Japan - worked never really see ourselves basically as the Do you have any comments wearer of obligations and duties. It’s an there travelling around the world. After I about the pressures facing said I didn’t want to travel, I spent about 9 obligation and a duty to see how our months of the year in Germany and Japan country can be made better and to re­ young lawyers? and Europe, London and it was while I was assess it and be involved and participate I think there are always pressures ... Every­ there that I got into TV. in public debate and so I think it is a one’s got pressures. I think the real issue responsibility. I think young lawyers can is how do you deal with these pressures. What happened? have a fundamental role in this [process], I think you can have guidelines until the I got rung up when I was in Switzerland whatever their viewpoint. cows come home and I think they are use­ having dinner with someone, a program­ ful and I think the more information you mer from Channel 7 a bloke called Gary You are President of the can get the better. The ultimate guidelines Fenton said do you want to do a TV show? Council of Trustees of the actually reside in your own heart and your So I said, because I’d written a lot and he National Gallery. How did own conscience and in your own talents. said do you want to produce one and I said you become involved? “Oh yeah” and he said you’ve got to do it I was always interested in art - I used to What do you mean by that? full-time and I said “Oh, I have to take 3 collect art when I was in uni. I actually think you have to look into months off to do it”. I went back to the yourself and ask what you want to do. bloke I was travelling with who was my Are you an artist yourself? boss and he said take off as long as you I tried once. [It’s] an intersection of three things: “What want - he said you can always come back What was that? am I good at?”, which is basically “what so give it a shot. You know we talked about Sculpture ... shithouse, but I’m interested can I do?” and “what would I like to do?” it for a long time and I talked about it with in it. In my business, I deal with lots of The two of those things don’t necessarily my girlfriend who subsequently became writers and poets and scriptwriters and coincide; and, lastly: “What ought I to do?” my wife and she said would you regret it if screenwriters and musicians. I see visual - you know, “what’s the right thing to do?”, you didn’t try it - you know when you’re on arts as just another form of artistic expres­ “what does society need me to do?”, “what your death bed would you kick yourself sion, so it’s the same deal. does my own social position demand of and wonder “what if”. That’s the worse thing you can wonder “what if”, so I gave it Where do you see the me?” a shot and that’s what happened. National Gallery's future? When you can actually get an intersection Would you go back to private We’ve got some big challenges at the between those three things, rare though moment. The Nlational Gallery is a fantastic that is, if you can roughly find some practice? institution - its 150 years old more or less intersection between them, that’s the area Well, no ... and that’s nothing to do with and with a collection that’s second to none people should aim for. I think people too private practice - It’s just in fairness to the and it’s the best collection of Australian art often look outwards to try to find external clients! in the world. It’s truly one of the worlds determination of those things rather than In 1998, you were elected great picture colle ctions. looking inward. You are taking one step delegate from Victoria at the You know this iis a multi million dollar pic­ forward and re-assessing and taking Constitutional Convention. ture collection of Rembrandts and Monets ... another step forward and re-assessing ... Do you think there is a clear great, great treasures of art that we have but too often we are driven by external role for young lawyers in this here in Melbourne and its under-valued in determinants we are always thinking: process? a way. “Someone else should give me some guidelines”, “someone else should give I think that young lawyers, like ... any What are you doing at the people, have a role. [Young lawyers] me advice”, ... “someone else should understand this complicated area to moment? assist me”, “what will my partner think of We are in the miiddle of opening a new do with the Constitution and have an me?”, “what will my girlfriend think of museum of Australian art at Federation incredibly important role in education and me?”, “what will my parents think of me?”, Square, opening a re-renovated museum advocacy. [Young lawyers] have the of international art at St Kilda Road and “how will this work?” capacity to inform, to encourage, to stim­ there are going to be sensational new ulate discussion, to put propositions to The truth is at this stage of our lives, we buildings. We’lil probably have another 30 clearly articulate what the debate is about, have had information overload because per cent of our art on display at any point you know the confines of the debate, to we’re not short of facts and we are not articulate better models, to describe the in time. short of information. Probably, what we’re defects in models, to basically be involved I think the future of the Gallery of Victoria is short of is having sat down and assimil­ in the carriage of a debate. about bringing art and people together - ated that and there is only one person who ...[Young lawyers need to consider it’s not complex - that’s it. How better to can assimilate all of that and that’s us. whether] ... what they are doing to encour­ bring art and ipe-ople together - I mean we’ve got their artt and we can get more of In my own life, my best decisions have age debate ... [given their] unique under­ been based on thinking time and doing standing of how these things work it and its poiintlles.s hanging it on the walls something that I know is right... you know compared to the rest of the community. unless people come. it’s right and you know it’s what you ought ...[Y]oung lawyers are in a unique position to do. ■ to assist our country in arriving at the right I raised with Steve the pressures facing conclusion, whatever the right conclusion young lawyers, for example, the difficulty is and I actually think it’s a responsibility, I in achieving a hallanced life. I talked about 1 This is an edited excerpt of the interview. don’t think it’s ... optional... [W]e often see the healthy balance guidelines released by

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