The winners at this year's Sony Tropfest festival have been announced, with Gary Eck taking the first prize for his comedy, The Money.
The festival, held on February 22, beamed the 16 finalist's films live via satellite to venues in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Perth, Hobart and Brisbane, where they were watched by audiences of over 130,000 people.
In recognition of the growing significance of the short film festival, the judging panel was made up of seven celebrity judges, led by Salma Hayek and Josh Lucas, and last year's winner Tim Bullock. As well as winning first prize, Eck also walked away with Best Screenplay. Other big winners on the night were Costa Avgoustinos, who won Third Prize, as well as the Sony Foundation Young Talent Award and the Sony Ericsson People's Choice Award, and Steve Baker, who won Second Prize and Best Comedy.
The full list of winners is as follows:
First Prize Gary Eck, The Money
Second Prize Steve Baker, Confessions of an Animation
Third Prize Costa Avgoustinos, Yin
Best Male Actor Dorain Nkono, Enzo
Best Female Actor Nancy Nesnas, Summer Angst
Best Comedy Steve Baker, Confessions of an Animation
Best Cinematography Andrew McPherson, For Every Year
Best Screenplay Gary Eck, The Money
Best Original Score Ashley Klose, Book 'Em
Best Editing Stewart Reeves, One Down
The Tropicana Award Greg Williams, The Little Woman
Sony Best Young Director's Award Costa Avgoustinos, Yin
Sony Ericsson People's Choice Award Costa Avgoustinos, Yin
