By Ché Baker
By now you’ve heard all about the 60th Annual AACTA awards, from the Red Carpet to the glamorous ceremony and all the things we can’t talk about that happened at the after party. What you may not have heard are the rumblings and conversations that take place at events such as these about how much the landscape is changing.
Even as the Australian industry is making strides with its international standard of production, there was plenty of backroom talk about the impact of streaming services, the transition of TV to a subscription based offering, and also how well Australian independent films have been doing in the new world order.
This year’s AACTAs saw a great list of nominees, which are a testament to the quality of productions happening in this country. As a member of the AFI, the public have the right to vote on the films and categories that make up the prestigious awards. Over the last several months, several cinemas around the country have played host to screenings of the AACTA selected films, which members can attend for free. Access through AACTA TV online also gave members the opportunity to view and vote. It’s a great reason to join, even at the associate level, to get a chance to see the wide range of films which were entered, with many not getting the public recognition of the nominees.
This year there were a record number of films, with some notable new categories. Not least of which was the ‘Best Indie Feature Film’ in an effort to acknowledge and reward films made ‘outside the system’. That gong was taken out by Jirga, the story of a man who travels to Afghanistan in an attempt to appease his conscience from war. Other notable nominees were Brother’s Nest and West of Sunshine, though a dozen others entered the competition. And that is something, which has to be said – there are criteria for qualification (eg. acceptance in certain film festivals, cinema seasons), but also a sizeable fee, meaning that the films in contention (or not) may be impacted by this discretionary rule.
Top honours in 2018 went to Sweet Country for Best Film, beating out a field which included Cargo, Breath and Joel Edgerton’s Boy Erased. Sweet Country director Warwick Thornton also claimed the award for Best Direction and made no secret of how much he wanted to win in his post-victory speech.
“It’s an awards ceremony, and there are awards and they’re incredibly special and empowering – so you want to win them…. it makes you feel better about all the bullshit it’s taken to get you to where you are. We wanna win them and when you don’t all you can do is turn that little bit of sadness, which is actually a little bit of anger, into happiness and empower yourself to do better next time.”
Bunya Productions, who produced Sweet Country, also took home the award for best drama series with Mystery Road – and Sweet Country’s lead Hamilton Morris won best actor, leaving a indigenous theme to the awards this year.
Damon Herriman, about to be seen as Charles Manson in Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, won Best Male Actor in a TV drama for his role in Riot, with Kate Box winning Best Female Actor for the same show. Simon Baker took out Best Supporting Male for Breath, beating out great performances from Josh McConville in 1%, and Joel Edgerton in Boy Erased. The latter did get the gong however for Best Adapted Screenplay – and Edgerton reiterated how important he felt it was to tell this story and hopefully end the practice of (gay) conversion therapy. The film also won Best Supporting Actress with Nicole Kidman in attendance to receive her award.
For a complete list of winners check here.
Behind the glitz and glam, and far from the red carpet, are huge teams of people who go unrecognised for their contributions to what is ultimately one of the most expensive and difficult art forms on the planet. Filmmaking is a team effort, and an award for one team member is an award for the entire crew. The Merger producer Anne Houston said she was “so happy just to be nominated” with two of her actors vying for awards for best supporting actor and actress.
“It’s ridiculously cool that our little film The Merger has been nominated for Best Lead [Kate Mulvany] and Best supporting Actor [Fayssal Bazzi). We are lucky to have worked with these two incredible human beings,” Houston said, acknowledging her entire team felt that the nominations were a reward for their efforts.
There was discussion behind the scenes also of the conspicuous categories that are left out of award ceremonies such as these, like the enormous contribution made by the stunt performers. And recognition of the challenge of how to put certain things in categories… comparing a standup comedian’s Netflix special to a comedy TV series for example seemed a lot like comparing apples and oranges to many.
As the landscape continues to change, and the nature of screen content looks to new formats, durations and screen sizes – nights such as the AACTAs are a nod to the people who often need to raise millions of dollars just to get to the starting line, and then work 14-16 hour days in extreme conditions for the purposes of entertainment, education and documentation. In a world where there are more eyeballs on screens than ever before, you should definitely log on to AACTA TV and feast upon the vast amount of productions which go unrecognised. It will restore your faith that there is an abundance and depth of talent in this country, and we can hope that the model of the future allows for a sustainable industry.
