:: Spotlight :: 2012 Samsung AACTA AwardsBy: Carmine PascuzziThe newly established Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) recently announced all nominees for the inaugural Samsung AACTA Awards, which will be held at the Sydney Opera House in Sydney on January 31 2012. The announcement confirms which film and television performers, practitioners and productions are contending for Australia’s highest screen accolade, an AACTA Award, increasing anticipation around who will become the Australian Academy’s first Award recipients. Internationally awarded animator, writer and director Adam Elliot joined actors Alexandra Schepisi, Daniel Henshall and Claudia Karvan at Sydney’s National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA) to announce the nominees, which confirmed the strength of Australian film and television in 2011. Highlighting the reach and diversity of nominees, the nominations are spread across 14 Feature Films (out of a possible 21), 14 Documentaries, four Short Animations, six Short Fiction Films and 23 Television Productions. Speaking of the nominations, AFI | AACTA CEO, Damian Trewhella, said: "The Australian Academy is proud to celebrate Australia’s best film and television productions and the talented people who create them. The strength of the Award nominees announced in this, our inaugural year, confirms the creativity, passion and vitality of Australia’s film and television industry. AACTA congratulates all nominees, and we look forward to inducting our first Award recipients in January 2012.” INAUGURAL SAMSUNG AACTA AWARDS NOMINEES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST YOUNG ACTOR AACTA AWARD FOR BEST VISUAL EFFECTS AACTA RAYMOND LONGFORD AWARD TELEVISION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST CHILDREN'S TELEVISION SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST TELEVISION COMEDY SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LIGHT ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST TELEVISION DRAMA SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST TELEFEATURE, MINI SERIES OR SHORT RUN SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTION IN TELEVISION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SCREENPLAY IN TELEVISION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LEAD ACTOR IN A TELEVISION DRAMA AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LEAD ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION DRAMA AACTA AWARD FOR BEST GUEST OR SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A TELEVISION DRAMA AACTA AWARD FOR BEST GUEST OR SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION DRAMA AACTA AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE IN A TELEVISION COMEDY SHORT FILM AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SHORT ANIMATION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SHORT FICTION FILM AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SCREENPLAY IN A SHORT FILM DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST FEATURE LENGTH DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY UNDER ONE HOUR AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTION IN A DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST EDITING IN A DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SOUND IN A DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM SAMSUNG AACTA AWARD FOR BEST FILM AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST EDITING AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SOUND AACTA AWARD FOR BEST ORIGINAL MUSIC SCORE AACTA AWARD FOR BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN AACTA AWARD FOR BEST COSTUME DESIGN AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LEAD ACTOR AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LEAD ACTRESS AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS AFI MEMBERS' CHOICE AWARD ********************************************************************** **Australian Academy announces first Award recipient – Don McAlpine** Australian cinematography legend, Donald M. McAlpine (ACS/ASC), was recently announced as the recipient of the nation’s highest screen accolade – the AACTA Raymond Longford Award. The announcement sees McAlpine join an illustrious group of Australian screen greats, each of whom are previous Raymond Long Award recipients, including Peter Weir, Geoffrey Rush, Fred Schepisi, Charles ‘Bud’ Tingwell and Jack Thompson. McAlpine’s career spans more than 50 films made over 40 years, and includes Australian classics such as Don’s Party and ‘Breaker’ Morant, through to international blockbusters such as Predator, Patriot Games and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. He has received numerous accolades throughout his career including an Oscar and BAFTA nomination for Best Cinematography for Moulin Rouge!, a BAFTA nomination for William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet, working with Baz Luhrmann, as well as three AFI Awards. This marks the first award to be bestowed by the newly-established Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). McAlpine will be officially awarded with a special presentation at the Samsung AACTA Awards Luncheon on Sunday January 15 – the first of AACTA’s two awards events, both of which will be held in January to fall within the international screen awards season. The Luncheon will include special tributes for McAlpine by fellow screen luminaries Bruce Beresford, Jack Thompson and P.J. Hogan. AFI/AACTA CEO, Damian Trewhella, said, “The announcement of Don McAlpine as the recipient of the AACTA Raymond Longford Award marks a milestone in Australian history, being the first award bestowed by the new Australian Academy. Don McAlpine is a most deserving recipient of the Raymond Longford Award, the highest accolade which AACTA can bestow on an individual, and we are delighted that such an outstanding screen practitioner is the first person to be awarded by AACTA. With more than 50 films to his name, three AFI Awards, one Academy Award nomination and two BAFTA nominations amongst other accolades, McAlpine is truly an Australian artist of international standing. Announcing Don McAlpine as the first honoree of the inaugural Samsung AACTA Awards provides the perfect opening to our Awards season.” McAlpine, now aged 77, is still working at full speed and continues to adapt to new digital technology. With his lifelong partner, his wife Jeanette, at his side, he has just completed filming for P.J. Hogan’s latest feature film, Mental, starring Toni Collette, Liev Schreiber and Anthony LaPaglia. Upon being told of the Award, Don McAlpine said, “I accept the Raymond Longford Award as a great personal honour. I am thrilled with the honour it implies to the art and craft of Australian cinematographers.” Fellow Australian screen great and long time friend, Jack Thompson AM, said, “Don and I have known each other for about 40 years. He's a good friend. His cinematography has been instrumental in both my career as an actor and the establishment of an Australian film industry that is recognised worldwide for excellence. No one deserves this award more than Don. His contribution to cinema is without peer. Good on ya mate!” Internationally acclaimed director, Bruce Beresford, also praised McAlpine, “Don has photographed a staggering number of feature films, both in Australia and overseas. He is a great artist, capable of varying his style to suit the subject matter of the film. He is a delight to work with. A credit to the Australian film industry.” AFI Chairman, Alan Finney, said, “Don McAlpine has been a key player in our industry over nearly 40 years working on an incredibly diverse range of films including such memorable films as Moulin Rouge!, which earned an Oscar nomination in 2002, Predator, Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Patriot Games, Peter Pan, The Time Machine, Clear and Present Danger, Mrs. Doubtfire, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and X-Men Origins and Wolverine. I first became aware of Don when I became involved in our industry back in the early 1970s and films such as The Adventures of Barry McKenzie, The Getting of Wisdom, ‘Breaker’ Morant and My Brilliant Career played a key role in establishing our local production credentials both in Australia and Internationally. Don has now once again been recognised for his role as a cinematographer who has made significant and substantial contributions to the global art of filmmaking.” Don McAlpine – A history of achievement in international cinematography Starting his career as an amateur photographer in country NSW, where he was working as a school teacher, McAlpine quickly rose to prominence in the burgeoning local film industry of the late 1960s and 70s. Having freelanced for the ABC, then becoming Chief Cameraman for the Commonwealth Film Unit (CFU), McAlpine took leave to shoot his first feature film - Bruce Beresford’s The Adventures of Barry McKenzie (1972) - the first feature fully financed by the new Australian Film Development Corporation, and an internationally successful movie that spearheaded the resurgence of local production. McAlpine went on to shoot many more films for Bruce Beresford, including Don’s Party (1976), The Getting of Wisdom (1978), ‘Breaker’ Morant (1980) and Puberty Blues (1981). During this period, McAlpine also shot for other directors, including Richard Franklin (Patrick, 1978), Tom Jeffrey (The Odd Angry Shot, 1979), and Gillian Armstrong (My Brilliant Career, 1979). After coming to the attention of New York director Paul Mazursky, who asked McAlpine to shoot his influential 1982 film Tempest, McAlpine began working steadily in the US. His work from early 1980s with Mazursky and iconic directors like Alan J. Pakula (Orphans, 1987; See You in the Morning, 1989) and Martin Ritt (Stanley & Iris, 1989) led to projects with high profile Hollywood directors including Ron Howard (Parenthood, 1989) and Chris Columbus (Mrs Doubtfire, 1993; Stepmom, 1998). Working in Hollywood, Don McAlpine’s Australian connections have remained strong. He has worked there as cinematographer for fellow Australian directors Phil Noyce (Patriot Games, 1992; Clear and Present Danger, 1994), Mel Gibson (The Man Without a Face, 1993) and P.J. Hogan (Peter Pan, 2003). McAlpine has also shot two films for Baz Luhrmann: William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet (1996), and then Moulin Rouge!, for which he was nominated for an Oscar® for Best Cinematography in 2002. Whether he’s working on edgy performance-based dramas like Anger Management (2002) or on big budget special effects-laden spectacles like The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe (2004) or X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2008), McAlpine is known within the industry for his extraordinary ability to adapt his skills to the stories he is filming, and to complement the particular strengths and weaknesses of the people he is working with. Don is currently the subject of a documentary, Show Me The Magic, to be screened next year on SBS and at key festivals. The film is being directed by Cathy Henkel, who is producing alongside Trish Lake, who says this of McAlpine: “Don is a man of artistry, skill, vision, ethics and amazing fortitude. He is a living legend.” ************************************************************ *BMW stiches up two-year deal with AACTAs** Local and international stars of the screen will take to the red carpet in style with BMW Australia today announcing a two year sponsorship of the Australian Film Institute’s - Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) Awards. As part of the deal, a fleet of BMW’s famous from their own starring roles in feature films will ferry stars to the inaugural Samsung AACTA Awards Ceremony, to be broadcast by the Nine Network on January 31, 2012. The broadcast gives Australia’s movie fans a front row seat at the film and television industry’s premier awards night. The cars used will include the BMW 6 Series which features in the current blockbuster Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol. From the elegant BMW limousines of today to iconic BMW’s of the past, each car in the celebrity fleet will have a story behind it. ************************************************************* **Samsung AACTA Awards Luncheon** The inaugural Samsung AACTA Awards Luncheon, presented by Digital Pictures, was held at Sydney’s Westin Hotel, marking the first Award winners to be announced by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). Presenters at the event included film and television favourites Rhada Mitchell, Rebecca Gibney and Susie Porter, internationally renowned directors such as Bruce Beresford and Fred Schepisi, and entertaining Oscar winner Adam Elliot, to name a few. The event was hosted by acclaimed actress Sigrid Thornton. The Samsung AACTA Awards Luncheon recognised the talent and innovation of artists and craftspeople working across the television, documentary, short fiction film, short animation and feature film categories. The prestigious AACTA Raymond Longford Award, the nation’s highest screen accolade, was presented to Australian cinematography legend, Donald M. McAlpine (ACS/ASC), accompanied by moving and insightful tributes from director Bruce Beresford, and long time friend and colleague Jack Thompson. The Byron Kennedy Award was also presented. Celebrating outstanding creative enterprise within the film and television industries, the Byron Kennedy Award is given to an individual or organisation whose work embodies innovation and the relentless pursuit of excellence. This year, filmmaker Ivan Sen was awarded for “his unique artistic vision and for showing, by his resourceful multidisciplinary filmmaking, that telling stories on screen is in reach of all who have something consequential to say”. Ivan’s internationally heralded and award winning credits include Beneath Clouds, Yellow Fella and the 2011 feature film Toomelah, which screened in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival. The complete list of winners announced at the Samsung AACTA Awards Luncheon, presented by Digital Pictures, is as follows: AACTA RAYMOND LONGFORD AWARD BYRON KENNEDY AWARD AACTA AWARD FOR BEST VISUAL EFFECTS TELEVISION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST TELEVISION COMEDY SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE IN A TELEVISION COMEDY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST CHILDREN'S TELEVISION SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN TELEVISION SCREEN CRAFT SHORT FILM AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SHORT ANIMATION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SHORT FICTION FILM AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SCREENPLAY IN A SHORT FILM DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST FEATURE LENGTH DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY UNDER ONE HOUR AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTION IN A DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST EDITING IN A DOCUMENTARY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SOUND IN A DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM AACTA AWARD FOR BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST EDITING AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SOUND AACTA AWARD FOR BEST ORIGINAL MUSIC SCORE AACTA AWARD FOR BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN AACTA AWARD FOR BEST COSTUME DESIGN AFI MEMBERS' CHOICE AWARD ********************************************************************** **Geoffrey Rush named Australian Of The Year** The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) is proud to congratulate its founding President Geoffrey Rush, who has been named as Australian of the Year 2012. One of eight finalists, Geoffrey Rush was announced Australian of the Year at Parliament House in Canberra. Geoffrey Rush, king of stage and screen, has uniquely captured the hearts and minds of not just judges and critics, but audiences around the world. The honour of Australian of the Year expands his already impressive list of acknowledgements: an Academy Award (Shine), a Tony Award (Exit the King), an Emmy Award (The Life and Death of Peter Sellers), two Golden Globes, three BAFTAS, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, two AFI Awards and an AFI Raymond Longford Award. This announcement further attests that there is no one more suited than Geoffrey Rush to serve as inaugural President of AACTA, an Academy whose primary role is to identify, award, promote and celebrate Australia's greatest achievements in film and television. Geoffrey Rush will be in Los Angeles to host the AACTA International Awards Ceremony at Soho House on Friday January 27, where he will be joined by fellow Award presenters and Australian screen icons, including Nicole Kidman and Guy Pearce, to award some of the world’s finest writers, directors and actors. He will then return to Australia for the Samsung AACTA Awards Ceremony at the Sydney Opera House on January 31, which will be broadcast that night on the Nine Network at 9.30pm. Awards across film and television in the categories of Best Film, Best Television Drama Series, Best Acting, Best Screenplay and Best Direction, among others, will be announced at the Ceremony. ************************************************************************** **AACTA Ceremony - Winners announced** The complete list of winners announced at the Samsung AACTA Awards Ceremony is as follows: AACTA AWARD FOR BEST YOUNG ACTOR TELEVISION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST TELEVISION DRAMA SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST TELEFEATURE, MINI SERIES OR SHORT RUN SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LIGHT ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION SERIES AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTION IN TELEVISION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SCREENPLAY IN TELEVISION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LEAD ACTOR IN A TELEVISION DRAMA AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LEAD ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION DRAMA AACTA AWARD FOR BEST GUEST OR SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A TELEVISION DRAMA AACTA AWARD FOR BEST GUEST OR SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION DRAMA SWITCHED ON AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD FOR BEST TELEVISION PROGRAM SWITCHED ON AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD FOR BEST PERFORMANCE IN A TELEVISION DRAMA •Asher Keddie. Paper Giants: The Birth Of Cleo. ABC1 FEATURE FILM SAMSUNG AACTA AWARD FOR BEST FILM AACTA AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTION AACTA AWARD FOR BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LEAD ACTOR AACTA AWARD FOR BEST LEAD ACTRESS AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR AACTA AWARD FOR BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS ************************************************************************** **Pictures from the AACTA Awards and after-party** Here are some pictures from the red carpet and media room at the Sydney Opera House.
Here are some pictures from the after party that was held at Hyde Park Barracks
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