"Samson & Delilah," Australia’s entry in the Oscar foreign-language film race, was the big winner at the Australian Film Institute Awards Saturday night in Melbourne. The film took home awards for Best Film, Best Direction and Best Original Screenplay, along with a shared Best Young Actor award for its two stars, Marissa Gibson and Rowan McNamara.
At the AFI Industry Awards, which took place on Friday, the film won in the Best Cinematography and Best Sound categories, as well as picking up the AFI Members’ Choice Award.
Director/writer Warwick Thornton’s drama, which deals with two teenagers who are ostracized from their remote, indigeneous community in central Australia, was also nominated for its musical score and supporting actress, and for the News Limited Readers’ Choice Award.
"Balibo," the story of killings during the Indonesian occupation of East Timor in 1975, won the award for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Lead Actor (Anthony LaPaglia) and Best Supporting Actor (Oscar Isaac). In the actress categories, Frances O’Connor won the Best Lead Actress award for "Blessed," while Rachel Griffiths took Best Supporting Actress honors for "Beautiful Kate."
