- Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards 2005: Sarah Watt’s feel-disturbed drama Look Both Ways topped four categories, including Best Film and Best Direction. Cate Blanchett and Hugo Weaving were named Best Actress and Best Actor for their work in the sociopsychological drama Little Fish.
Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards 2005: Cheerless drama Look Both Ways, Cate Blanchett among winners
Somewhat surprisingly, writer-director Sarah Watt’s gloomy drama Look Both Ways was named Best (Australian) Film at the 2005 Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards ceremony held on Nov. 26. Look Both Ways also topped the Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor (Anthony Hayes) categories. (This year’s Australian Film Institute Award winners and nominees are listed further below.)
Set during a hot Adelaide summer, Look Both Ways – whose intertwined storylines and downbeat theme will likely bring to mind Alejandro González Iñárritu and Guillermo Arriaga’s 21 Grams – chiefly revolves around the emotional attachment the develops between a photojournalist (William McInnes) dealing with a dire health diagnosis and an artist (Justine Clarke) who has witnessed a man get run over by a train.
This past September, Look Both Ways was the winner of the 2005 Toronto Film Festival’s Discovery Award.
Acting winners Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving
The Australian Film Institute Awards for Best Actress and Best Actor went to Cate Blanchett (Academy Award winner for The Aviator, 2004) and Hugo Weaving for their work in Rowan Woods’ Little Fish, the story of suburban Sydney woman and former heroin addict (Blanchett) trying to regain control of her life – except that everything seems to be working against her.
Weaving (nine years Blanchett’s senior) plays the woman’s stepfather, a former National Rugby League star turned heroin addict.
Ceremony host and ‘international’ winner Russell Crowe
The 2005 Australian Film Institute’s AFI Awards were announced at two ceremonies, both hosted by Oscar winner Russell Crowe (Gladiator, 2000): The AFI Craft Awards were held on Nov. 25; the AFI Awards Dinner, where the winners in the “major categories” were made pubic, was held on Nov. 26.
Claudia Karvan and Alex Dimitriades had announced the AFI Award nominations on Oct. 21 at the Wharf Restaurant in Sydney.
By the way, besides hosting the two AFI Awards ceremonies Russell Crowe received the AFI International Award for Best Actor for his performance in Ron Howard’s period boxing drama Cinderella Man. The AFI International Award for Best Actress went to Emily Browning for Brad Silberling’s fantasy adventure Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events.
The 2005 Australian Film Institute Awards’ feature film winners and nominees are listed below, along with a partial list of winners and nominees in several other categories. Note: The AFI International Awards are given to Australians working abroad.
Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards 2005: Winners & nominations
Best Film
Little Fish – Vincent Sheehan, Liz Watts & Richard Keddie
* Look Both Ways – Bridget Ikin
Oyster Farmer – Anthony Buckley & Piers Tempest
The Proposition – Chris Brown, Jackie O’Sullivan, Chiara Menage & Cat VilliersBest Director
Little Fish – Rowan Woods
* Look Both Ways – Sarah Watt
The Proposition – John Hillcoat
Wolf Creek – Greg McLeanBest Actress
Saskia Burmeister – The Proposition
* Cate Blanchett – Little Fish
Justine Clarke – Look Both Ways
Frances O’Connor – Three DollarsBest Actor
* Hugo Weaving – Little Fish
William McInnes – Look Both Ways
Guy Pearce – The Proposition
Ray Winstone – The PropositionBest Supporting Actor
Martin Henderson – Little Fish
* Anthony Hayes – Look Both Ways
John Hurt – The Proposition
Robert Menzies – Three DollarsBest Supporting Actress
Tracy Mann – The Proposition
* Noni Hazlehurst – Little Fish
Daniela Farinacci – Look Both Ways
Kestie Morassi – Wolf CreekBest Original Screenplay
Little Fish – Jacquelin Perske
* Look Both Ways – Sarah Watt
The Proposition – Nick Cave
Wolf Creek – Greg McLeanBest Adapted Screenplay
The Proposition – Christine Madafferi
The Illustrated Family Doctor – Kriv Stenders & David Snell
The Widower – Lyndon Terracini
* Three Dollars – Robert Connolly & Elliot PerlmanBest Cinematography
Little Fish – Danny Ruhlmann
Oyster Farmer – Alun Bollinger
* The Proposition – Benoît Delhomme
Wolf Creek – Will GibsonBest Film Editing
* Little Fish – Alexandre de Franceschi & John Scott
Look Both Ways – Denise Haratzis
The Proposition – Jon Gregory
Wolf Creek – Jason BallantineBEST ORIGINAL MUSIC SCORE
Little Fish – Nathan Larson
* The Proposition – Nick Cave & Warren Ellis
Three Dollars – Alan John
Wolf Creek – François TétazBEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Little Fish – Luigi Pittorino
Look Both Ways – Rita Zanchetta
* The Proposition – Chris Kennedy
Three Dollars – Luigi PittorinoBest Costume Design
The Proposition – Paul Warren
Little Fish – Melinda Doring
Look Both Ways – Edie Kurzer
* The Proposition – Margot WilsonBest Sound
* Little Fish – Sam Petty, Peter Grace, Robert Sullivan & Yulia Akerholt
Look Both Ways – Andrew Plain, Peter Smith & Toivo Lember
The Proposition – Craig Walmsley, Paul Davies, Richard Davy & Ian Morgan
Wolf Creek – Des Kenneally, Peter Smith, Pete Best & Tom HeuzenroederDOCUMENTARIES & SHORT FILMS
Best Documentary
Girl in a Mirror – Helen Bowden
Jabe Babe: A Heightened Life – Janet Merewether, Deborah Szapiro & Georgia Wallace-Crabbe
Killers in Eden – Klaus Toft
* Land Mines – A Love Story – Dennis O’RourkeBEST DOCUMENTARY DIRECTOR
Kathy Drayton – Girl in a Mirror
* Janet Merewether – Jabe Babe: A Heightened Life
John Moore – Abortion, Corruption and Cops – The Bertram Wainer Story
Klaus Toft – Killers in EdenBEST SHORT FICTION FILM
A Message from Fallujah – Richard Gibson
Azadi – Anthony Maras
* Jewboy – Tony Krawitz
The Eye Inside – Cordelia BeresfordBEST SHORT ANIMATION
2:41 Upfield – Callum Cooper
Fritz Gets Rich – Eddie White & James Calvert
Piñata – Mike Hollands
* The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello – Anthony LucasTELEVISION
BEST TELEFEATURE OR MINISERIES
* The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant – Andrew Benson & Greg Haddrick
Little Oberon – Susan Bower
Hell Has Harbour Views – Ian Collie
Through My Eyes – Simone North & Tony CavanaughOTHER AWARDS
AFI YOUNG ACTOR AWARD
* Sophie Luck – Blue Water High
Maddi Newling – Danya
Brittany Brynes – Little Oberon
Joanna Hunt-Prokhovnik – Three DollarsAFI INTERNATIONAL AWARD FOR BEST ACTOR
Russell Crowe – Cinderella ManAFI INTERNATIONAL AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS
Emily Browning – Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate EventsAFI INTERNATIONAL AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN FILMMAKING
Roger Savage – House of Flying DaggersBYRON KENNEDY AWARD
Chris KennedyAFI LONGFORD LIFE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Ray BarrettNEWS LIMITED READERS’ CHOICE AWARD
Cate Blanchett
“Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards 2005: Disturbing Drama” notes
Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards website.
Justine Clarke Look Both Ways image: Hibiscus Films | Dendy Films.
“Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards 2005: Disturbing Drama” last modified in March 2026.