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‘Uproar’, ‘Furiosa’ recognised at ADG Awards as Robert Connolly, Dylan River receive special honours

Hamish Bennett, Rhys Darby and Paul Middleditch.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga director George Miller has shared the Australian Directors’ Guild (ADG) Award for Best Direction of a Feature Film (Budget $1.5 M or over) with Uproar pair Paul Middleditch and Hamish Bennett at Friday’s ceremony in Melbourne.

Miller’s fifth installment in the Mad Max franchise centres on the younger version of the character made famous by Charlize Theron in 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road as she is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers and falls into the hands of a great Biker Horde led by the Warlord Dementus, played by Chris Hemsworth. Furiosa goes on to escape captivity and plot a path toward returning home and exacting revenge

Uproar also has a journey of self-discovery at its core, with protagonist 17-year-old Josh Waaka (Julian Dennison), finding his voice and embracing his community in 1981 Dunedin against the background of the South African Springboks team’s arrival in New Zealand.

Of the other narrative feature categories, Best Direction of a Feature Film (Budget under $1.5M) went to Haydn Butler for Home Kills, a dark comedy that follows two brothers who run a small rural home kills and butchery service but begin offering a new service – killing people – to make ends meet. Natalie Bailey was awarded Best Direction of a Debut Feature for Audrey, about a young woman struggling to find her place after a personal tragedy disrupts her life.

George Miller on the set of ‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’, which was filmed in NSW.

The first of the Australian Directors’ Guild special awards, the Cecil Holmes Award, was presented to director, producer, and writer Robert Connolly in recognition of his nearly 30-year career, which has included directing The Dry and sequel Force of Nature, along with Blueback, and the upcoming The Magic Beach.

The inaugural Baz Luhrmann Pathfinder Award, celebrating a director who has carved out a unique creative path, was presented to Indigenous director Dylan River – known for helming titles such as Mystery Road: Origin and this year’s Thou Shalt Not Steal.

In congratulating this year’s winners, ADG executive director Sophie Harper said distinct voices and inclusive narratives were a recurring theme among those recognised.

“The winners demonstrate the incredible breadth of Australian directing talent, from seasoned icons to bold new voices, and the special awards for Robert Connolly and Dylan River highlight our industry’s dedication to nurturing creativity and recognising excellence at every stage of a director’s career,” she said.

The full list of winners is below:

The Esben Storm Award for Best Direction of a Children’s Series Episode

Rosemary Myers – Beep and Mort S2 E2 – Today! The Musical

Best Direction of a Comedy Series Episode

Helena Brooks – Population: 11 S1 E10 – Like Father, Like Son

Best Direction of Online Shortform

Kaius Potter – Fluff – Before The Mirror

Best Direction of Online Longform

Jessica Smith – Videoland S1 E1 & E2

Best Direction of an Interactive or Immersive Project

Logan Mucha – A Beat To Hold Back The Dawn

Best Direction of a Music Video

Mick Soiza – Semiiré: Decisions

Best Direction of Commercial Content

Sarah Hickey – Monster & Bear: The Perfect Brief

Best Direction of a Commercial Advertisement

Tim Bullock – AAMI: Athletes In The Making

Best Direction of a Student Film

Veniamin Gialouris – Gorgo

Best Direction of a Short Film

Annelise Hickey – Hafekasi

Best Direction of an Animation

Tania Vincent and Ricard Cussó – The Sloth Lane

Alexs Stadermann – 200% Wolf

Best Direction of a Short Documentary

Brietta Hague – Compass S39 E10 – Not In My Name

Best Direction of a Documentary Series Episode or One-Off

Serge Ou – Runn

Best Direction of a Drama Series Episode

Emma Freeman – Fake S1 E5

Best Direction of a Miniseries Episode

Bonnie Moir – Exposure S1 E5

Best Direction of a Debut Feature

Natalie Bailey – Audrey

Best Direction of a Documentary Feature

Frances Elliott and Samantha Marlowe – Renee Gracie: Fireproof

Best Direction of a Feature Film (Budget under $1.5 M)

Haydn Butler – Home Kills

Best Direction of a Feature Film (Budget $1.5 M or over)

Paul Middleditch and Hamish Bennett –Uproar

George Miller – Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

Cecil Holmes Award

Robert Connolly

Baz Luhrmann Pathfinder Award

Dylan River