By Abhi Parasher
The awards were hosted by radio and television journalist, Ash London.
Established in 1987, the Australian International Documentary Conference (AIDC) is a not-for-profit organisation committed to supporting and elevating nonfiction storytelling through a range of creative and business opportunities across film, television, streaming and digital media.
This year’s line-up featured an extensive program of 147 local and international speakers and 106 local and international decision makers. In a program spanning 40-plus sessions and over 600 curated meetings, the AIDC awards was attended by over 780 delegates.
The awards were adjudicated by 18 jury members comprising of local industry talent such as Lynette Wallworth and Leah Harris, as well as international producers such as Yvonne Ashley Kouadjo.
And the winners are…
BEST FEATURE DOCUMENTARY
WASH MY SOUL IN THE RIVER’S FLOW | 2022
Philippa Bateman, Archie Roach (AC), Kate Hodges, Ian Darling, Emma Donovan
BEST DOCUMENTARY / FACTUAL SERIES
THE AUSTRALIAN WARS | 2022
Rachel Perkins, Darren Dale, Jacob Hickey
BEST DOCUMENTARY / FACTUAL SINGLE
STILL WE RISE | 2022
John Harvey, Anna Grieve, Leon Rodgers, Patrick McCabe
BEST SHORT-FORM DOCUMENTARY
EDEN ALONE SURPASSES THEE | 2022
Tom Chapman, Gabriel Morrison, Finn Clarke, Geri Docherty
BEST AUDIO DOCUMENTARY
THE GREATEST MENACE: INSIDE THE GAY PRISON EXPERIMENT | 2022 / 2023
Patrick Abboud, Simon Cunich
BEST INTERACTIVE / IMMERSIVE DOCUMENTARY
NIGHT CREATURES | 2022
Isobel Knowles Van Sowerwine, Philippa Campey.
“Philippa Bateman’s Wash My Soul in the River’s Flow celebrates the talents and carries the passions of two of Australia’s most revered and beloved musicians – Archie Roach (AC) and Ruby Hunter – through a performance of their sublime Kura Tungar: Songs from the River song cycle,” said the Jury in a statement.
“Elegant, confident, and intimate to its magnetic subjects, Bateman’s film so impressively captures a setting and a stage where music compels the story of their lives, and where it stands proudly in resistance against the injustices of our history.
“Through an ambitious and outrightly beautiful combination of concert film, biography and political struggle, Wash My Soul in the River’s Flow is a profound sharing of Roach and Hunter’s own gifts of storytelling; a film full of heart, the beauty of song, and the transcendent power of art to confront pain, and to heal.”
As part of the AIDC Awards ceremony, the Stanley Hawes Award was presented to filmmaker, Dr Cathy Henkel. The $5,000 Stanley Hawes Award is presented annually at the Australian International Documentary Conference (AIDC) to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to the Australian documentary and factual sector.
Another exciting development at the AIDC awards was the appointment of four new members on the Board of Directors. Kelrick Martin, Head of Indigenous ABC; Paul Williams, Documentary Executive Screenwest; Bernadine Lim, Unscripted Commissioner SBS; and incoming Company Secretary Marco D’Angele, Partner at Marshalls Dent & Wilmoth, who replaces outgoing Secretary Clement Dunn, also of Marshalls Dent & Wilmoth.
The AIDC awards also revealed finalists for the inaugural Fresh Cuts Documentary Pitch. Proudly presented by AIDC and Screen Australia, the Fresh Cuts Documentary Pitch is a new pitching initiative designed to support filmmakers seeking market interest and development funding for documentaries that shine a spotlight on stories that appeal to young adult audiences.
The finalists were Bimbo Biology Body Breakdown, Dying to Succeed, Glitter Gang, The Real Meaning of Pleasure and Replica. All five finalists will receive $30,000 in Screen Australia development funding for each of their projects.
AIDC CEO / Creative Director Natasha Gadd also announced the winners of the FACTory Pitch Prizes, awarded to participating projects by international documentary festivals and markets.
The winners included Winter Herd, which won the Sheffield Doc/Fest Prize, I Thought Jesus Was Korean, which took out the Hot Docs Prize, Untying the Knot, which was awarded the Dok Leipzig Prize, and Bukal Bukal, which was awarded the Sunny Side of the Doc Prize. “Bukal Bukal presents amazing storytelling so relevant to many First Nations people throughout the world. We believe that Sunny Side could be the perfect platform to help find all the worldwide partners this great project deserves!” said Jean-Jacques Peretti, Programming, Sunny Side of the Doc (France).
Each winner received a double pass to attend the respective documentary conference.
