The casting directors behind 'Nitram', 'The Dry', 'High Ground', and 'The Furnace' will battle it out in the feature film category of the Casting Guild of Australia Awards to be held this month.
ABC's 'The Newsreader' has collected a further six AACTA Award nominations, taking its total to 16, with the academy unveiling the technical craft nominees today.
'Nitram' now leads in film after picking up another seven nominations, taking its tally to 14.
AACTA has revealed those in contention for the major film, television and short-form prizes at this year's awards, with 'High Ground' leading the charge in the film categories and 'The Newsreader' ahead in television.
'High Ground', 'The Invisible Man' and '2067' lead the feature film nominees and 'Hungry Ghosts', 'Stateless' and 'Bump' television for the upcoming Australian Production Design Guild (APDG) Awards.
Cinemas should have scored a significant boost last weekend, with two major releases in the way of Disney's 'Raya and the Last Dragon' and Roadshow's 'Chaos Walking'. Yet exhibitors report softer starts for both titles than they hoped for.
Crime thriller 'The Little Things' is the first new release in weeks to succeed in knocking Robert Connolly's 'The Dry' from the no. 1 position at the box office.
Australian feature films are currently dominating the box office, with exhibitors reporting a "revitalised" audience appetite for local stories. However, both producers and distributors have concerns about being able to actually get Aussie features off the ground in the future, with the Producer Offset slated to fall from 40 to 30 per cent from July.
Australia's lucky run at the box office continues. Four out of the five highest grossing films last weekend were local titles, with new release 'Long Story Short' joining the ranks with 'The Dry', 'Penguin Bloom' and 'High Ground'.