# 2004 Australian Film Institute Awards

The 46th Annual Australian Film Institute Awards (generally known as AFI Awards), were a series of awards presented by the Australian Film Institute (AFI). The awards celebrated the best in Australian feature film, television, documentary and short film productions of 2004. The event was held at the Regent Theatre, Melbourne, on 29 October 2004 and a highlights program televised on ABC two days later on Sunday evening.

## Winners and nominees

The nominations were announced on 1 October 2004. Leading the feature film nominees was Somersault with 15 nominations in 13 categories. Marking Time, a miniseries inspired by the real-life experiences of Afghan refugees and their hosts in a rural town gained the most television nominations with 10, followed by sitcom Kath & Kim with 7 nominations.
Cate Shortland's debut feature Somersault, about a teenage girl learning some hard lessons about love in Jindabyne took 13 awards, winning in every category, including best film and beating the previous record of eight wins shared by Lantana in 2001 and Newsfront in 1978. In the television category the ABC miniseries Marking Time won seven awards out of its 10 nominations, including best miniseries, best direction, best screenplay, and best leading and supporting actor and actress.

### Feature Film

| Best Film | Best Direction |
| Somersault – Anthony Anderson Love's Brother – Jane Scott, Sarah Radclyffe The Old Man Who Read Love Stories – Julie Ryan and Michelle de Broca Tom White – Alkinos Tsilimidos, Daniel Scharf | Cate Shortland – Somersault Jan Sardi – Love's Brother Khoa Do – The Finished People Alkinos Tsilimidos – Tom White |
| Best Original Screenplay | |
| Somersault – Cate Shortland Love's Brother – Jan Sardi The Finished People – Khoa Do, Rodney Anderson, Joe Le and Jason McGoldrick Tom White – Alkinos Tsilimidos | |
| Best Lead Actor | Best Lead Actress |
| Sam Worthington – Somersault Dan Spielman – One Perfect Day Kevin Harrington – The Honourable Wally Norman Colin Friels – Tom White | Abbie Cornish – Somersault Olivia Pigeot – A Cold Summer Leeanna Walsman – One Perfect Day Chloe Maxwell – Under The Radar |
| Best Supporting Actor | Best Supporting Actress |
| Erik Thomson – Somersault Nathaniel Dean – Somersault Hugo Weaving – The Old Man Who Read Love Stories Dan Spielman – Tom White | Lynette Curran – Somersault Hollie Andrew – Somersault Loene Carmen – Tom White Rachael Blake – Tom White |
| Best Cinematography | Best Editing |
| Somersault – Robert Humphreys ACS Love's Brother – Andrew Lesnie One Perfect Day – Gary Ravenscroft Tom White – Toby Oliver | Somersault – Scott Gray One Perfect Day – Gary Woodyard The Old Man Who Read Love Stories – Tania Nehme Tom White – Ken Sallows ASE |
| Best Original Music Score | Best Sound |
| Somersault – Decoder Ring One Perfect Day – David Hobson The Old Man Who Read Love Stories – Graham Tardif Thunderstruck – David Thrussell and François Tétaz | Somersault – Mark Blackwell, Peter Smith and Sam Petty One Perfect Day – Glenn Newnham, Jack McKerrow and Paul Pirola Thunderstruck – Peter Smith, Peter Townend and Wayne Pashley Tom White – James Currie, Michael Bakaloff, Peter Walker and Tristan Meredith |
| Best Production Design | Best Costume Design |
| Somersault – Melinda Doring Love's Brother – Paul Heath One Perfect Day – MacGregor Knox, Patrick Bennet and Joseph Kiely Tom White – Dan Potra | Somersault – Emily Seresin Love's Brother – Anna Borghesi One Perfect Day – Katie Graham Tom White – Jill Johanson |

### Television

| Best Drama Series | Best Comedy Series |
| Stingers: Series 8 (Nine Network) – Roger Le Mesurier, Roger Simpson and John Wild McLeod's Daughters: Series 3 (Nine Network) – Susan Bower and Posie Graeme-Evans MDA: Series 3 (ABC) – Denny Lawrence White Collar Blue: Series 2 (Network Ten) – Steve Knapman and Kris Wyld | Double the Fist (ABC) – Megan Harding Kath & Kim: Series 3 (ABC) – Gina Riley, Mark Ruse and Jane Turner Skithouse (Network Ten) – Craig Campbell, Jodie Crawford-Fish and Rove McManus Stories from the Golf (SBS) – Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope |
| Best Telefeature or Mini Series | Best Light Entertainment Series |
| Marking Time (ABC) – John Edwards Go Big (Foxtel / Network Ten) – Ellie Beaumont, Rosemary Blight and Michael Miller Small Claims (Network Ten) – Rosemary Blight, Kylie du Fresne, Ben Grant The Brush Off (Seven Network) – Huntaway Films and Ruby Entertainment | Enough Rope With Andrew Denton: Series 2 (ABC) – Andrew Denton and Anita Jacoby Mondo Thingo (ABC) – Anna Bateman, Jennifer Collins and Kath Earle Strictly Dancing: Season 1 (ABC) – Paul Melville and Steve Rothwell The Glass House: Season 4 (ABC) – Ted Robinson |
| Best Lead Actor | Best Lead Actress |
| Abe Forsythe – Marking Time (ABC) Sam Neill – Jessica (Network Ten) Geoff Morrell – Marking Time (ABC) David Wenham – The Brush Off (Seven Network) | Bojana Novakovic – Marking Time (ABC) Gina Riley – Kath & Kim: Series 3 (ABC) Jane Turner – Kath & Kim: Series 3 (ABC) Claudia Karvan – Small Claims (Network Ten) |
| Best Guest or Supporting Actor | Best Guest or Supporting Actress |
| Matthew Le Nevez – Marking Time (ABC) Ray Barrett – All Saints: Series 7, Episode 26: "Falling From Grace" (Seven Network) Glenn Robbins – Kath & Kim: Series 3 (ABC) Lech Mackiewicz – Marking Time (ABC) | Katie Wall – Marking Time (ABC) Magda Szubanski – Kath & Kim: Series 3 (ABC) Abbie Cornish – Marking Time (ABC) Jacinta Stapleton – Stingers: Series 8, Episode 8: "Break and Enter" (Nine Network) |
| Best Direction | Best Screenplay |
| Cherie Nowlan – Marking Time (ABC) Chris Martin-Jones – All Saints: Series 7, Episode 26: "Falling From Grace" (Seven Network) Grant Brown – Stingers: Series 8, Episode 8: "Break and Enter" (Nine Network) Sam Neill – The Brush Off (Seven Network) | John Doyle – Marking Time (ABC) Gina Riley and Jane Turner – Kath & Kim: Series 2, Episode 8: "The Hideous Truth" (ABC) Matt Ford – Stingers: Series 8, Episode 8: "Break and Enter" (Nine Network) John Clarke – The Brush Off (Seven Network) |
| Best Children's Television Drama | Outstanding Achievement in Television Screen Craft |
| Wicked Science: Series 1 (Network Ten) – Daniel Scharf and Jonathan M. Shiff Fergus McPhail (Network Ten) – Ewan Burnett and Alan Hardy Noah & Saskia (ABC) – Patricia Edgar Out There: Series 2 (ABC) – Michael Bourchier | Kitty Stuckey – Kath & Kim: Series 3 (ABC) for costume design Paul Grabowsky – Jessica (Network Ten) for music composition Paul Nichola – Noah & Saskia (ABC) for animation and digital effects Barry Lanfranchi – Wicked Science: Series 1 (Network Ten) for digital effects |

### Non-feature film

| Best Documentary | Best Direction in a Documentary |
| The President Versus David Hicks – Curtis Levy Helen’s War: Portrait of a Dissident – Sonja Armstrong and Anne Pick Lonely Boy Richard – Denise Haslem and Rose Hesp The Men Who Would Conquer China – Nick Torrens | Anna Broinowski – Helen's War: Portrait of a Dissident Faramarz K. Rahber – Fahimeh’s Story Cathy Henkel – The Man Who Stole My Mother’s Face Bentley Dean and Curtis Levy – The President Versus David Hicks |
| Best Short Fiction Film | Best Short Animation |
| Lennie Cahill Shoots Through – Paul Oliver Floodhouse – Miro Bilbrough So Close To Home – Jessica Hobbs The Scree – Paul McDermott | Birthday Boy – Sejong Park Footnote – Pia Borg It’s Like That – Southern Ladies Animation Group (S.L.A.G.) Lucky For Some – Robert Stephenson |
| Best Screenplay in a Short Film | Best Cinematography in a Non-Feature Film |
| Danielle Maclean – Queen of Hearts Sejong Park – Birthday Boy Miro Bilbrough – Floodhouse Madeleine Blackwell – So Close To Home | Ian Batt – Inside Australia Kim Batterham – Floodhouse Tim Hudson – My Sister David Parer – Platypus: World’s Strangest Animal |
| Best Editing in a Non-Feature Film | Best Sound in a Non-Feature Film |
| Jane St Vincent-Welch – The Men Who Would Conquer China Janet Merewether – Palermo: 'History' Standing Still Denise Haratzis – So Close To Home David Cole – Truckies Don’t Eat Quiche | David Bridie, John Patterson and Tony Vaccher – Land of the Morning Star Andrew Duffield, Liam Egan and Phil Judd – Big Men; Bigger Dreams: Australian Wrestlers James Lee, Chris McKeith and Megan Wedge – Birthday Boy Andrew Plain and Liam Price – Good Luck Jeffrey Brown |

### Additional Awards

| Young Actor's Award | Best Foreign Film |
| Natasha Wanganeen – Jessica Richard Wilson – Out There: Series 2 Sarah Vongmany – The Finished People Jarryd Jinks – Tom White | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King – Peter Jackson, Barrie M. Osborne and Fran Walsh Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind – Anthony Bregman and Steve Golin Lost in Translation – Sofia Coppola and Ross Katz Mystic River – Robert Lorenz, Judie G. Hoyt and Clint Eastwood |

### Individual Awards

| Award | Winner |
| Byron Kennedy Award | John Clarke |
| Raymond Longford Award | Patricia Lovell |
| Global Achievement Award | Naomi Watts |

## Multiple nominations

The following films received multiple nominations.
* 15 nominations: Somersault
* 12 nominations: Tom White
* 8 nominations: One Perfect Day