AACTA Award for Best Indie Film


The AACTA Award for Best Indie Film is an award presented by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts since 2018.
The award is presented at the annual AACTA Awards, which hand out accolades for achievements in feature film, television, documentaries and short films. Since 2024 the awards have been held at the Gold Coast, Queensland.

History

The establishment of the AACTA Award for Best Indie Film was announced on 1 May 2018. The inaugural award was won by Jirga, directed by Benjamin Gilmour.

Eligibility

The intention of the award is to allow "a pathway into competition for a greater number of films from filmmakers with diverse backgrounds, as well as films from emerging filmmakers". Only films with a budget of under million are eligible.

Winners and nominees

2018

The winner of the inaugural award in 2018, in the 8th AACTA Awards:
Other films nominated were:

2019

The winner of the 2019 award, in the 9th AACTA Awards:Buoyancy, directed by Rodd Rathjen
Other films nominated were:Acute Misfortune Book Week Emu Runner

2020

The winner of the 2020 award, in the 10th AACTA Awards:Standing Up for Sunny
Other nominations:A Boy Called Sailboat Hot Mess Koko: A Red Dog Story A Lion Returns
  • ''Unsound''

2021

The winner of the 2021 award, in the 11th AACTA Awards:
Other films nominated were:

2022

The winner of the 2022 award, in the 12th AACTA Awards:
Other films nominated were:Akoni Darklands Lonesome Pieces
  • ''Smoke Between Trees''

2023

The winner of the award celebrating the best films released in 2023 in the 13th AACTA Awards, announced in February 2024:
Other films nominated were: