Dan Golding

Prof. Dan Golding is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Media and Communications at Swinburne University of Technology. He is an award-winning composer, broadcaster, and scholar specializing in media technology, film soundtracks, and videogame music. His groundbreaking soundtrack for Untitled Goose Game made history as the first game soundtrack nominated for an ARIA Award. He hosts Screen Sounds on ABC Classic, Australia’s only national weekly radio show dedicated to film and game music. Golding’s research focuses on media history, digital culture, and franchise cinema, with notable publications including Star Wars After Lucas (2019) and contributions to journals like Convergence and Continuum. He leads the ARC-funded project 'Artistic Practice in Australian Videogame Development' and has collaborated with major orchestras and cultural institutions. His academic roles include supervising over 9 PhD students and teaching courses on screen studies and media analysis.

Education: PhD (Screen Studies) and Bachelor of Arts (Hons) from The University of Melbourne.

Research Interests: Soundtrack composition, videogame production, media history, digital culture, franchise cinema, nostalgia in popular culture.

Recent Article Trends: Golding’s work bridges academia and creative practice, with a focus on soundtracks in film, games, and VR. His articles analyze cultural policy impacts on Australian game music, historical film music techniques, and the intersection of nostalgia and franchise cinema.

Awards: BAFTA nomination, ARIA nomination, APRA Best Music award, teaching excellence awards, and recognition as Australia’s top games journalist (2013 Lizzie Awards).

Advising & Grants: Supervised 9 PhD completions. Key grants include the ARC Discovery Project (2023-2025) and the Australian Music in Games Benchmark Report with QUT.

Labs/Teams: Media Collaboration Network, contributor to ACMI exhibitions, and collaborator with the Freeplay Independent Games Festival.