Lieutenant Ben Jackson spent about 20 years working in film animation, where he worked on productions like television series Animalia, after completing a Bachelor of Animation degree at Griffith University.

However, with a lifelong passion for engineering, he switched careers while completing an electrical engineering degree and joined Navy as an assistant weapons electrical engineer officer, currently based at HMAS Kuttabul.

After six years of service, Lieutenant Jackson will be separating due to personal challenges and has signed up for the Arts for Recovery, Resilience, Teamwork and Skills (ARRTS) program as part of his transition process.

ARRTS is a four-week live-in program held twice a year at the University of Canberra. It involves experienced mentors teaching music, creative writing and visual art techniques to help participants discover new outlets and enhance their wellbeing.

“With my passion for creativity and dealing with the emotions of separation, being accepted into the ARRTS program was a wonderful form of therapy, and it was a privilege to participate,” Lieutenant Jackson said.

During his time posted to sea, Lieutenant Jackson described the high-tempo nature of day-to-day activities physically and mentally overwhelming.

'Despite us all being in the program with individual reasons, the caring environment made it possible for us to share experiences and to support one another.'

Based on his past career in animation, the ARRTS stream Lieutenant Jackson chose was visual arts.

“I saw it as an opportunity to just let go and dive into random projects – not trying to control creativity, but letting the creativity flow naturally – and I ended up doing projects I’d never have imagined,” he said. 

Lieutenant Jackson completed five different projects, but his major work was building a praxinoscope, which creates the illusion of movement by reflecting images from a spinning cylinder into a set of mirrors in the middle.

“I created strips of still images that featured horses galloping, birds flying and people dancing, and by putting a strip into the cylinder and spinning it, the subjects could be made to move in the mirrors, just like watching a film,” he said.

“Invented in 1877, this was one of the earliest forms of animation, and it was nice to see how captivated people were by seeing it in action.”

Other visual arts creations included colourful insects made with leaves, sewing, embroidery, lino prints and painting, and these were all on display in the art room for families and friends to enjoy on the last day, along with watching a spectacular showcase concert.

Interacting with people outside the Defence context was especially positive for Lieutenant Jackson and supporting his transition out of Navy.

“Despite us all being in the program with individual reasons, the caring environment made it possible for us to share experiences and to support one another,” he said.

“Even now I’m still in touch with participants from different parts of Australia and hope to catch up with some of them after my separation.”

'With my passion for creativity and dealing with the emotions of separation, being accepted into the ARRTS program was a wonderful form of therapy, and it was a privilege to participate.'

Looking back, Lieutenant Jackson said the program offered some unique benefits.

“People are always under pressure in the Defence context and juggling lots of things, so getting out of that environment and going at a slower pace allows them to reconnect with themselves, and by becoming more self-aware they may be more effective in managing things in the work context,” he said.

“And art gives so much back to people in so many different ways, like problem-solving, thinking outside the box, and the diversity of skills that you gain means that when you face another problem you’ve got a new set of tools in your bag with which to approach it from different angles.”

Following his medical separation from Defence, Lieutenant Jackson hopes to spend 12 months reconnecting with friends and family and continuing to create and start animating again.

The next ADF ARRTS program is running in Canberra from May 10 to June 5. Applications close April 6.

For more information email adf.arrts@defence.gov.au or call 02 6127 6505 during business hours.