Driving pass the Griffith Film School at night is like witnessing a cinematic set for a devil's…read moredinner party. The dramatic up-lighting emphasises the red stain glass which looks just like hell's hearth and dark shadows play dramatically across the window panes. By day it is just an educational institution, home to emerging filmmakers, game designers, animators and scriptwriters. The Griffith Film School boasts impressive facilities with its computer labs, editing facilities and film studios. Its new 92-seat cinema features a five metre screen, digital projection and Dolby 7.1 surround sound. It is a learning facility as well as being available to hire for private screening functions. Some of Australia's most respected filmmakers are amongst their Alumni including Peter and Michael Spierig, documentary filmmaker Peter Hegedus, scriptwriter Alice Addison and director Anthony Mullins. So if you fancy a career in filmmaking, you can't go wrong with a degree from this worthy institution.

The Film School (or GFS) is the hub for the filmmakers, animators and game designers of Griffith…read moreUniversity, the building is beautiful, the amenities are clean and kept and the facilities are second to none. As a third year film student I have had the privilege of meeting industry professionals and award winning creatives, I have learned the latest techniques on the most up to date software, I have had a chance to use some of the best and most recent cameras in the field and have had a blast doing it. The teaching staff are friendly and truly care about each student and each project as if it was their own. As a soon-to-be graduate I feel confident that I can leave this school with the skills I need and the knowledge to get me to where I want to go.

I remember St John's College most fondly due to the annual Jazz night it hosts. This ball included…read moremany college kids and friends of those living at John's in fancy suits and cocktail dresses while the St John's Jazz band played and everyone was just sophisticated and merry (at least until the kick on). St John's is one of many co-educational university housing colleges on campus at the University of Queensland St Lucia. It is a little bit fancier than most, with well sized rooms, nice gardens, and an iconic clock tower. The college is great if you are in any way drama or musically inclined, with plenty of music rooms, pianos and support for such endeavors. I have heard that their O-Week can be pretty tough for some, since their exec (the 2nd and 3rd years looking after the freshmen) have some interesting traditions but I am assured that this just helps bond the freshmen and that after this week all is good.

IMA is a good place to start if you're looking to learn an instrument. The location in Bowen Hills…read moreis just outside the city and convenient to get to. Parking can be a little bit of a nuisance, so keep your eye out for an on-street park. The teaching rooms are a good size and well equipped, and the teachers are knowledgeable. At a teaching organization like this one, the schedules are run pretty tightly and the teachers are essentially directed by the company so once your lesson time is up, you're out. It's a good place to learn the basics, but if you're after some more personal instruction, lessons with a private teacher could be better suited to you.

Whoever created Reverse Garbage is a genius and should be given a medal for helping to solve the…read moreworld's waste problems. Don't get me started on my overconsumption rant! Reverse Garbage is a not-for-profit that accepts donations of industrial scraps or pays a small fee for them, organises them in a way that is consumer-friendly and sells them, saving "rubbish" from going into landfill. As a sewer, I love their fabric scraps. Most of it's off-cuts of pretty odd shapes but there are some small rolls of fabric too. Selling truly random things like bottle caps, brochures, long tubes of mesh-like fabric--things that would otherwise be considered junk--this is a great place for creative souls, kindergarten teachers in search of craft material and anyone who wants to look first for second-hand materials before buying something new and contributing to the cycle of consumption! Uh-oh, I feel that rant coming on again...

Full of bits of wood, mannequins, plastic, rope, fabric and thousands of other bits and bobs that…read morewere going to be thrown out by various industrial places. In this way, they are stopping waste and allowing things to have a second chance at life. They are always getting new things in and the best way to hear about their latest bargain is to keep an eye on their facebook page. They are a not-for-profit organisation that goes to schools to do workshops and have a small shop that sells upcycled handmade goodies from local craftspeople. If you love craft and DIY (or you're renovating your house), this is the place for you. Everything is priced reasonably. I have used some of their things for my own crafting projects. Perhaps the only problem is their location; they can be a bit hard to get to. I catch the bus and jump off at the P.A. Hospital. From there it's about a 15 minute walk.

Each year, I leave the Brisbane Writers Festival (BWF) inspired, stimulated and sad that it's over…read morefor another year. For a week every September, BWF inhabits the State Library of Queensland bringing a host of local, national and international literary talents to its stages. Writers from all fields--literature, science, politics, psychology--come to talk about their work, discuss topics with other writers and deliver workshops over the week-long festival. The first four days are usually filled with events for school groups and the real events kick off with the opening night on a Thursday, followed by 3 jam-packed days of events for the adults. At BWF, there are both ticketed and non-ticketed events. I've always just stuck to the free ones and have never felt like I've missed out on anything. If happy to splash out, however, $15 to $20 will get you into a ticketed events. Master classes will set you back around $75 for 3 hours. Keep an eye on their website for the release of each year's program. Hard copies are also distributed in the Courier Mail nearing the festival and at bookshops such as Avid Reader, West End.

If the thought of books, writing, or reading makes you want to jump for joy, then the Brisbane…read moreWriter's Festival is a must. This festival has gone from strength to strength over the years, and attracts a strong variety of local and international writers every year. Last year, Jonathan Franzen, Ann Patchett, and Philip Pullman were among the big names that drew record number crowds. There are always interesting panels, workshops (oftentimes free, and many of them geared towards kids), and author interviews every day of the festival, and the venues for each event alternate between the clean, modern State Library facilities. The catering has also improved; this year they offered festival-goers a variety of sandwiches and freshly baked muffins, as well as rice paper rolls. Each year there is also a surprise flash mob too; two years ago a group of dancers executed a choreographed routine in one of the tents, and last year, a choir began singing on the ground level of the library.

The Geology Museum (aka the Geological Science Museum, aka the Earth Sciences Museum - I'm not sure…read morewhat to call it, since there are three different signs with three different names at the same location!) is a nifty little space at the University of Queensland's main campus. There are lots of rocks of all different kinds. Normally rocks are not my thing, but the descriptions and explanations are worthwhile, if you're interested in what Queensland is made of. But this museum is worth checking out for the fossils alone. Dinosaur bones, ancient sea creatures, petrified wood! Fossils are cool, man. I wish they would dust off the displays more frequently, though. The museum is free, and I'm sure it's taken care of by grad students, but a little care in presentation goes a long way.

My boyfriend takes Russian classes here and enjoys them well enough. Unfortunately, the tutors are…read morea mixed bag--some good, some not-so-good--but, the classes are structured well. The good thing about IML is that their classes cater to adults who work during the day and can only come to class during the evening. They also offer a huge number of languages--around 30--but if studying one of the less-popular languages, you may not find classes at your level. A year-long course will set you back around $460, with classes based on the university semester. Not a bad place to study a language, but for me studying French, I think I'd prefer Alliance Francaise for their broader range of classes.

I'm having an amazing time studying Polish at IML, it's such a great class with a really passionate…read moretutor!

Duchesne College, more fondly known as Duch, is an all girls Catholic College. You don't have to be…read moreCatholic to go here but faith does play a role in this on campus accommodation. Snuggled between the UQ Lakes and the Brisbane River, Duchesne is in a lovely and quiet area of the campus. You just have a short stroll through the serene UQ Lakes to get to class. While I did not actually spend my college years at Duch, I did stay there during the holidays once with my sister. We were looking for cheap accommodation and Duch had some rooms available. The room was very comfortable with a single bed, desk, chair, lamp and plenty of room to move. Each morning I was woken up to a Duch college girl practicing cello which made the experience all the move lovely.