The Australian Film Institute announced the nominees competing for awards in forty-eight categories, in feature film, television, short film and documentaries, on 27 October 2010. Animal Kingdom received eighteen nominations, the most of any film in the awards' history. On the awards night, Animal Kingdom picked up the most awards, with ten, including Best Film.
The nominees were announced on 27 October 2010, at the Sydney Theatre, in Dawes Point, New South Wales, by actors Jacki Weaver, Cate Blanchett, Gyton Grantley and Alex Dimitriades.[3] Animal Kingdom received the most nominations, with eighteen, becoming the most nominated film in the awards history.[4] Animal Kingdom received the most awards, with ten, including Best Film, and Best Direction and Best Original Screenplay for David Michôd.[5] Other feature film winners were Bright Star with three, Tomorrow, When the War Began, with two awards, and Beneath Hill 60 with one.[6] Some of the award categories in film, television, documentary and short film genres, for sound, editing, cinematography, music and television programs, were presented one day prior to the awards ceremony.[7]
{{swatch-inline|#EEDD82|| Category | Winners |
|---|
| Best Film | Animal Kingdom – Liz Watts |
| Beneath Hill 60 – Bill Leimbach |
| Bran Nue Dae – Robyn Kershaw and Graeme Isaac |
| Bright Star – Jan Chapman and Caroline Hewitt |
| The Tree – Sue Taylor and Yaël Fogiel |
| Tomorrow, When the War Began – Andrew Mason, Michael Boughen |
| Best Direction | David Michôd – Animal Kingdom |
| Jeremy Hartley Sims – Beneath Hill 60 |
| Jane Campion – Bright Star |
| Julie Bertuccelli – The Tree |
| Best Actor | Ben Mendelsohn – Animal Kingdom as Andrew "Pope" Cody |
| Brendan Cowell – Beneath Hill 60 as Captain Oliver Woodward |
| James Frecheville – Animal Kingdom as Joshua "J" Cody |
| Clive Owen – The Boys Are Back as Joe Warr |
| Best Actress | Jacki Weaver – Animal Kingdom as Janine "Smurf" Cody |
| Abbie Cornish – Bright Star as Fanny Brawne |
| Morgana Davies – The Tree as Simone |
| Charlotte Gainsbourg – The Tree as Dawn |
| Best Supporting Actor | Joel Edgerton – Animal Kingdom as Barry "Baz" Brown |
| Guy Pearce – Animal Kingdom as Nathan Leckie |
| Kodi Smit-McPhee – Matching Jack as Finn |
| Sullivan Stapleton – Animal Kingdom as Craig Cody |
| Best Supporting Actress | Deborah Mailman – Bran Nue Dae as Roxanne |
| Julia Blake – The Boys Are Back as Barbara |
| Kerry Fox – Bright Star as Mrs. Frances Brawne |
| Laura Wheelwright – Animal Kingdom as Nicky Henry |
| Best Young Actor | Harrison Gilbertson – Beneath Hill 60 as Frank Tiffin |
| Ashleigh Cummings – Tomorrow, When the War Began as Robyn Mathers |
| Morgana Davies – The Tree as Simone |
| James Frecheville – Animal Kingdom as Joshua "J" Cody |
| Best Original Screenplay | David Michôd – Animal Kingdom |
| David Roach – Beneath Hill 60 |
| Jane Campion – Bright Star |
| Peter and Michael Spierig – Daybreakers |
| Best Adapted Screenplay | Stuart Beattie – Tomorrow, When the War Began |
| Reg Cribb, Rachel Perkins and Jimmy Chi – Bran Nue Dae |
| Allan Cubitt – The Boys Are Back |
| Julie Bertuccelli – The Tree |
| Best Cinematography | Bright Star – Greig Fraser |
| Animal Kingdom – Adam Arkapaw |
| Beneath Hill 60 – Robyn Kershaw and Toby Oliver |
| The Waiting City – Denson Baker |
| Best Editing | Animal Kingdom – Luke Doolan |
| Beneath Hill 60 – Dany Cooper |
| Bright Star – Alexandre de Franceschi |
| Tomorrow, When the War Began – Marcus D'Arcy |
| Best Sound | Tomorrow, When the War Began – Andrew Plain, David Lee, Gethin Creagh and Robert Sullivan |
| Animal Kingdom – Sam Petty, Rob Mackenzie, Philippe Decrausaz, Leah Katz, Brooke Trezise and Richard Pain |
| Beneath Hill 60 – Liam Egan, Alicia Slusarski, Mark Cornish, Tony Murtagh, Robert Sullivan and Mario Vaccaro |
| Bran Nue Dae – Andrew Neil, Steve Burgess, Peter Mills, Mario Vaccaro, Blaire Slater, David Bridie and Scott Montgomery |
| Best Original Music Score | Animal Kingdom – Antony Partos and Sam Petty |
| Beneath Hill 60 – Cezary Skubiszewski |
| Bran Nue Dae – Cezary Skubiszewski, Jimmy Chi, Patrick Duttoo Bin Amat, Garry Gower, Michael Manolis Mavromatis and Stephen Pigram |
| Bright Star – Mark Bradshaw |
| Best Production Design | Bright Star – Janet Patterson |
| Animal Kingdom – Jo Ford |
| Beneath Hill 60 – Clayton Jauncey |
| Tomorrow, When the War Began – Robert Webb, Michelle McGahey, Damien Drew and Bev Dunn |
| Best Costume Design | Bright Star – Janet Patterson |
| Animal Kingdom – Cappi Ireland |
| Beneath Hill 60 – Ian Sparke and Wendy Cork |
| Bran Nue Dae – Margot Wilson |
| Best Visual Effects | Daybreakers – Peter and Michael Spierig, Rangi Sutton, James Rogers and Randy Vellacott |
| The Tree – Dave Morley, Felix Crawshaw, Claudia Lecaros and Tim Walker |
| Tinglewood – Wil Manning |
| Tomorrow, When the War Began – Chris Godfrey, Sigi Eimutis, Dave Morely and Tony Cole |
| Members' Choice Award | Animal Kingdom – Liz Watts |
| Beneath Hill 60 – Bill Leimbach |
| Bran Nue Dae – Robyn Kershaw and Graeme Isaac |
| Bright Star – Jan Chapman and Caroline Hewitt |
| The Tree – Sue Taylor and Yaël Fogiel |
| Tomorrow, When the War Began – Andrew Mason, Michael Boughen |
| Readers' Choice Award | Animal Kingdom – Liz Watts |
| Bran Nue Dae – Robyn Kershaw and Graeme Isaac |
| Kings of Mykonos – Nick Giannopoulos and Emile Sherman |
| The Owls of Ga'Hoole – Zareh Nalbandian |
| Tomorrow, When the War Began – Andrew Mason, Michael Boughen |
| International Award for Best Actor | Sam Worthington – Avatar as Jake Sully |
| Simon Baker – The Mentalist, Season 2 as Patrick Jane |
| Ryan Kwanten – True Blood, Season 3 as Jason Stackhouse |
| Kodi Smit-McPhee – The Road as Boy |
| International Award for Best Actress | Mia Wasikowska – Alice in Wonderland as Alice Kingsleigh |
| Toni Collette – United States of Tara, Season 2 as Tara Gregson |
| Bojana Novakovic – Edge of Darkness as Emma Charlotte Craven |
| Naomi Watts – Mother and Child as Elizabeth |
| Best Feature Length Documentary | Contact – Martin Butler and Bentley Dean |
| Inside the Firestorm – Lucy Maclaren and Alex West |
| The Snowman – Rachel Landers and Dylan Blowen |
| Strange Birds In Paradise - A West Papuan Story – Jamie Nicolai and John Cherry |
| Best Documentary Under One Hour | You Only Live Twice - The Incredibly True Story Of The Hughes Family – Ruth Cullen |
| The Ballets Russes In Australia – Dave Morley, Felix Crawshaw, Claudia Lecaros and Tim Walker |
| Rudely Interrupted – Susie Jones and Benjamin Jones |
| Surviving Mumbai – Andrew Ogilvie and Andrea Quesnelle |
| Best Documentary Series | Liberal Rule - The Politics That Changed Australia – Nick Torrens and Frank Haines |
| Addicted To Money – Andrew Ogilvie and Andrea Quesnelle |
| Disable Bodied Sailors – Karina Holden and Nick Robinson |
| Kokoda – Andrew Wiseman |
| Best Direction in a Documentary | Jacob Hickey – Inside the Firestorm |
| Amanda Chang – The Ballets Russes In Australia |
| Martin Butler and Bentley Dean – Contact |
| Charlie Hill-Smith – Strange Birds In Paradise - A West Papuan Story |
| Best Cinematography in a Documentary | Miracles – Toby Oliver for Episode 1: "Miracle in the Storm" |
| Disable Bodied Sailors – Nick Robinson for "Episode 3" |
| Strange Birds In Paradise - A West Papuan Story – Angus Kemp |
| Surviving Mumbai – Jim Frater |
| Best Editing in a Documentary | Inside the Firestorm – Steven Robinson |
| The Ballets Russes In Australia – Karin Steininger |
| Contact – Tania Nehme |
| Surviving Mumbai – David Fosdick |
| Best Sound in a Documentary | Inside the Firestorm – Jock Healy, Tristan Meredith and AJ Bradford |
| The Ballets Russes In Australia – Brett Aplin, Andrew McGrath, Erin McKimm and Terry Chadwick |
| Kokoda – David Bridie, Chris Goodes, Ian Grant and Patrick Slater for Episode 1: "The Invasion" |
| Strange Birds In Paradise - A West Papuan Story – Mik la Vage, Doron Kipen and David Bridie |
| Best Short Animation | The Lost Thing – Sophie Byrne, Andrew Ruhemann and Shaun Tan |
| Zero – Christopher Kezelos and Christine Kezelos |
| Best Short Fiction Film | The Kiss – Sonya Humphrey and Ashlee Page |
| Deeper Than Yesterday – Ariel Kleiman, Benjamin Gilovitz, Sarah Cyngler and Anna Kojevnikov |
| The Love Song Of Iskra Prufrock – Lucy Gaffy and Lyn Norfor |
| Suburbia – Antonio Oreña-Barlin and Richard Halsted |
| Best Screenplay in a Short Film | Ariel Kleiman – Deeper Than Yesterday |
| Sarah Shaw and Ian Meadows – A Parachute Falling in Siberia |
| Trent Dalton – Glenn Owen Dodds |
| Ashlee Page – The Kiss |
|
1. ^{{cite news |title=Shane Jacobson set for AFI gig |author=Darren Devlin |url=http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/entertainment/shane-jacobson-set-for-afi-hosting-gig/story-e6fredpu-1225968468527 |newspaper=The Advertiser |date=9 December 2010 |accessdate=6 October 2011}}
2. ^{{cite web |url=http://www.tvtonight.com.au/2010/12/week-50-4.html |title=Australian weekly television ratings: Week 50 |author=David Knox |date=6 December 2010|accessdate=6 October 2011 |work= |publisher=TV Tonight }}
3. ^{{cite web |url=http://www.afi.org.au/AM/ContentManagerNet/ContentDisplay.aspx?ContentID=11611&Section=AFI_Awards_Nominees2 |title=2010 SAMSUNG MOBILE AFI AWARDS NOMINEES |author= |accessdate=6 October 2011 |work= |publisher=Australian Film Institute }}
4. ^{{cite news |title=AFI Award nominees announced |author=Vicky Roach |url=http://www.heraldsun.com.au/entertainment/afi-award-nominees-announced/story-e6frf96f-1225944247664 |newspaper=Herald Sun |date=27 October 2010 |accessdate=6 October 2011}}
5. ^{{cite news |title=Ben Mendelsohn and Jacki Weaver popular winners at AFI awards |author=Michael Bodey |url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/ben-mendelsohn-and-jacki-weaver-popular-winners-at-afi-awards/story-e6frg8pf-1225969516643 |newspaper=The Australian |date=12 December 2010 |accessdate=7 October 2011}}
6. ^{{cite web |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-12-12/animal-kingdom-dominates-afi-awards/2372492 |title=Animal Kingdom dominates AFI Awards |author=Alison Savage |date=14 December 2010|accessdate=7 October 2011 |work=ABC Online |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) }}
7. ^{{cite web |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-12-11/animal-kingdom-takes-out-three-afi-awards/2370774|title=Animal Kingdom takes out three AFI awards |author=AAP Staff |date=11 December 2010|accessdate=7 October 2011 |work=ABC Online |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) }}