Simon Crean (Hotham, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government) Share this | Hansard source

Ben Snow, Tim Burke and Joe Farrell are each up for separate visual effects awards. The artist and author Sean Tan has been nominated for an animated short film, Kirk Baxter has been nominated for film editing, as has Dave Elsey for makeup. I give special congratulations to the team of four Australians, including three from Rising Sun Research, which has already received an Academy Award for Technical Achievements in its Cinitech online collaboration software used throughout the international industry.

These nominations demonstrate the respect and credibility that the Australian film and TV industry has won on the world stage. Our technical and creative skills are world class. This success is a demonstration of this government’s deeply held belief that a creative nation is also a productive nation. This is an industry that we must invest in and keep strong to ensure that the talents and skills continue to thrive. Last week, in fact, I released the report into the Australian independent screen production sector. It examined how the sector is faring and looked at the early impact of the three film tax offsets which make up the Australian Screen Production Incentive. In the past three years the government has provided $412 million in support through the tax system, compared to $136 million in the three years previously.

I look forward to working with the Australian screen industry, but, most particularly, I wish all of the Oscar nominees the best for the awards, which will be announced on Monday.

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