Phillip Noyce to be honoured by Australian Screen Directors Association
06 March 2006
Australian filmmaker Phillip Noyce will be presented with the 2006 ASDA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Direction at a special ceremony in Sydney on April 6. The internationally acclaimed director of Rabbit-Proof Fence, The Quiet American, Patriot Games and Dead Calm will return from London to attend the Australian Screen Directors Association Awards Dinner at St Patrick’s Estate, Manly.
One of Australia's great directing talents and successful directing exports, Noyce is also an ASDA founding member and one of its first Presidents. Past recipients of the Outstanding Achievement Award include Peter Weir, Fred Schepisi and Ray Lawrence.
Other filmmakers to be honoured on the night include Tom Jeffrey and Michael Carson, who both made significant contributions to the craft of directing. Michael Carson's award will be given posthumously as he passed away last year, but this night offers a great opportunity to celebrate his work and to reassert ASDA's support for his aphorism, "worship the divine detail".
ASDA will also recognise emerging talent with awards to be given to first-time directors whose feature films screened in 2004 and 2005. The recipients of these awards will be announced on the night.
The ASDA Awards dinner has established itself as one of the key events of the film calendar. Film producer David Elfick will be guest speaker at the Awards, following in the footsteps of Sydney Pollack, Peter Weir, Tom Keneally, Gillian Armstrong, David Stratton, Margaret Pomeranz and Bob Connolly, to name just a few.
Honouring
2006 ASDA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Direction - Phillip Noyce
Also presenting
2006 ASDA Accreditation Award for Excellence in Direction - Michael Carson
2006 ASDA Accreditation Award for Excellence in Direction - Tom Jeffrey
2004 & 2005 ASDA Award for Best Direction of a First Feature Film
In conjunction with the awards, ASDA will hold two FREE screenings of Phillip Noyce films at Dendy Opera Quays. Open to the public, tickets are available from the box office on the day only. Backroads (1977) starring Bill Hunter, Gary Foley and Julie McGregor will be shown at 6.30pm on Friday, April 7. Harrison Ford and Willem Defoe lead the cast in Clear and Present Danger (1994), to be screened at 6.30pm on Sunday, April 9.
Phillip Noyce and Margaret Pomeranz will hold a Q&A session after the screening of Clear and Present Danger.
Website: http://www.asdafilm.org.au
