The ABC has scored an unrivalled 57 AACTA (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts) Award nominations across 23 categories, more than any other broadcaster, with Mystery Road and Riot both in line to win 11 of Australia’s top screen prizes. The ABC’s landmark Mystery Road (Best Drama) and Riot (Best Telefeature or Mini Series) received more nominations than any other television program, including Best Lead Actor, Best Lead Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Direction, Best Screenplay, Best Editing and Best Original Music Score.
“Telling remarkable and relevant Australian stories is at the heart of our role as the nation’s leading public broadcaster. Congratulations to all our nominees and external partners for their dedication towards delivering the best content to all Australians every day.” Michael Carrington, ABC Acting Director Entertainment & Specialist, commented.
Sally Riley, ABC Head of Drama, Comedy and Indigenous content said that the nominations came as Screen Australia’s annual Drama Report revealed the ABC is the nation’s leading broadcaster in supporting home-grown stories. The largest contribution from a single broadcaster in 2017-18 was by the ABC, which provided finance for 23 titles. For the first time, the combined budgets for content produced for first release on the ABC was higher than the combined figure for the commercial free-to-air networks. The ABC’s finalists in this year’s AACTA Awards include Friday on My Mind, with six nominations including Best Telefeature or Mini Series, and Series 5 of Rake, with four nominations including Best Drama. Jack Irish was also nominated for Best Drama.
“It’s so exciting for the ABC to have this amazing number of nominations for the AACTA Awards. I am especially proud that Mystery Road and Riot have claimed an astonishing 11 nominations each, recognising the ABC’s unrivalled commitment to high-quality, distinctive Australian drama.” Riley commented.
Nominated for Best Lead Actor or Actress in a Drama Series or Telemovie are: Damon Herriman (Riot), Richard Roxburgh (Rake), Aaron Pedersen (Mystery Road) , Judy Davis (Mystery Road), Kate Box (Riot). Nominated for Guest or Supporting Roles in a drama are Caroline Brazier (Rake), Deborah Mailman (Mystery Road), Tasma Walton (Mystery Road), Wayne Blair (Mystery Road), Damien Garvey (Rake), Xavier Samuel (Riot) and Ashley Zukerman (Friday On My Mind).
Rosehaven, The Letdown and Black Comedy are up for Best Comedy Program, with Alison Bell (The Letdown) and Celia Pacquola (Rosehaven) in line for Best Performance in a Television Comedy, along with Back in Very Small Business’s Wayne Hope and Robyn Nevin.
Hard Quiz, Julia Zemiro’s Home Delivery and The Weekly with Charlie Pickering are up for Best Entertainment Program. The Checkout received a nod for Best Lifestyle Program.
Best Children’s Program nominations include Guess How Much I Love You, My Year 7 Life, Grace Beside Me and The New Legends of Monkey.
Best Documentary or Factual finalists include Employable Me, Hawke: The Larrikin and the Leader, and You Can’t Ask That.
Nominations for Best Direction in Drama, Comedy or Non-Fiction include Rachel Perkins for Mystery Road, Jeffrey Walker for Riot, David Batty for Black As, Bruce Permezel for Hawke: The Larrikin and the Leader and Aaron Smith and Kirk Docker for You Can’t Ask That.
Mystery Road is also in the mix for Best Cinematography, while Friday on My Mind is also up for Best Sound and Production Design and Best Editing. Riot was also nominated for Best Production Design and Casting. Riot and New Legends of Monkey were nominated for Costume Design in Television.
The ABC’s nominees for Best Documentary or Factual Program are Employable Me, You Can’t Ask That and Hawke: The Larrikin and the Leader.
Deadlock and Kiki and Kitty were both nominated for Best Online Video or Series