One of Australia’s favourite actresses, Claudia Karvan, will receive the prestigious Chauvel Award at the Gold Coast Film Festival, which begins tonight.
The Chauvel Award, named in honour of filmmaker Charles Chauvel, acknowledges an individual who has made significant contribution to Australian cinema. Previous recipients have included Gillian Armstrong, George Miller, Geoffrey Rush and Heath Ledger.
“It’s a generous acknowledgement from an industry that I have grown up in,” Karvan tells FilmInk of the honour. “It feels simultaneously, wonderfully sentimental and career affirming!”
Karvan begun her career at just 14 when she appeared in Gillian Armstrong’s High Tide alongside Judy Davis, and the actress remembers that as her “first big milestone.”
“I still feel their collective influence on me. Their dedication, professionalism, and ability to imbue their work with their own stories remains a constant inspiration.”
While Karvan has been a constant on our screens in film and television, she points to her work behind the camera as being just as satisfying.
“Directing Secret Life of Us was my first opportunity to work with writers and to see our industry through a less actor-centric prism,” Karvan says. “It fuelled my desire to produce.”
“The fact that Love My Way is still attracting awards and Spirited is still gaining new audiences, years after both these series were produced, represents a satisfying milestone. That I have contributed to projects that have longevity is very special and important to me.”
The actress, most recently on screens in the TV series Puberty Blues, The Time of Our Lives and Jack Irish, says she’s been challenged throughout her career by “just the normal stuff – juggling family, sustaining healthy relationships, nerves, reining in my over-thinking brain!”
As the recipient of the 2016 Chauvel Award, Claudia Karvan will take part in a special conversation with David Stratton (another previous Chauvel Award recipient!) on Saturday, April 9 at 6.30pm at the Arts Centre Gold Coast. Tickets can be purchased to this event now.
