1st AACTA Awards | |
---|---|
Date | 15 January 2012 and 31 January 2012 |
Site |
Westin Hotel and Sydney Opera House Sydney, New South Wales |
Hosted by | No host |
Produced by | John Leahey (executive producer) |
Highlights | |
Best Film | Red Dog |
Most awards | Snowtown (6) |
Most nominations | The Hunter (14) |
Television coverage | |
Network | Nine Network |
Duration | 2 hours |
Ratings | 314,000 |
The Inaugural Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards, known more commonly as the AACTA Awards, presented by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA), honoured the best Australian and foreign films of 2011 took place on two separate events, in Sydney, New South Wales: the AACTA Awards Luncheon, on 15 January 2012, at the Westin Hotel, and the AACTA Awards Ceremony, on 31 January 2012, at the Sydney Opera House. Following the establishment of the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts, by the Australian Film Institute (AFI), these awards marked the inauguration of the AACTA Awards, but served as a continuum to the AFI Awards, which were presented by the AFI since 1958. The ceremony was televised on the Nine Network.
The nominees for the non-feature award categories were announced on 30 August 2011, and all other non-feature film, feature film and television nominees were announced at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) on 30 November. The Academy presented awards for achievements in foreign film, and announced the nominees at the AACTA Awards Luncheon.
On 18 August 2011, the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) was established by the Australian Film Institute (AFI), to raise the profile of Australian film and television in Australia and abroad, and to change the way it rewards talent from its previous jury system, to the more recognised and understood elements of foreign film organisations. These awards will serve as a continuum to the Australian Film Institute Awards, which were presented by the Australian Film Institute. A gold statuette was created by Australian sculptor Ron Gomboc, which depicts "a human silhouette based on the shape of the Southern Cross constellation." The nominees and winners were determined by the Academy's fifteen Chapters, which comprise screen professionals from industry guilds and organisations including actors, directors, producers and screenwriters, who each decide the nominees in their individual fields and then vote for the winners of each category. The president of the awards is Australian actor Geoffrey Rush.