Congratulations to the finalists and winners of the Aotearoa Film and Television Awards (previously the Qantas Film and Television Awards) which were held on Saturday night in Auckland.

Florian Habicht’s Love Story was the big winner on the night, taking away awards for Best Director, Best Editing and Best Feature Film. The Insatiable Moon, which Rialto Channel screened in August, deservingly scored a couple of acting awards for Rawiri Paratene (Best Lead Actor) and Greg Johnson (Best Supporting Actor), and My Wedding And Other Secrets was also successful, picking up Best Screenplay and Best Actress for Michelle Ang.

Director Jason Stutter’s Predicament missed out on Saturday night, but scooped the Craft Awards which were presented at a luncheon on Thursday.

You’ll be able to catch up on who won the television categories in the channel promos which will no doubt run this week, but a full list of the film winners are down below.

While the AFTA’s seem to have passed largely without scandals or surprises, the same can’t be said for the Academy Awards. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has had an embarrassing hiccup to deal with over the last week. After working hard to convince us Eddie Murphy was the perfect choice to host the 2012 Oscar ceremony in February, Murphy abruptly pulled out of the gig following the resignation of the show’s producer, director Brett Ratner.

Ratner, the director of X-Men 3 and Murphy’s new film Tower Heist, resigned after making inappropriate comments about his sex life on Howard Stern’s radio show, and using a homophobic slur (when asked if he rehearsed before a film shoot, he replied “rehearsing is for fags”). The Academy President Tom Sherak said Ratner has done “the right thing for the academy and for himself”. Ratner and Murphy were brought in to breathe new life into the ceremony, especially after this year’s poorly received event.

Oscar winning producer Brian Grazer (A Beautiful Mind), who also produced Tower Heist, has replaced Ratner as the show’s Producer, and Billy Crystal has been handed the job of host. This will be the 9^th time Crystal has hosted, and while he’s a safe choice it doesn’t bode well for a fresh new take on the award ceremony.

The other good news of the week is that the NZ International Film Festival has announced its key dates for next year, and unlike this year (when the whole country was re-arranged for the RWC) the festival will not take place during the school holidays. The Festival will begin in Auckland (19 July – August 5) and open simultaneously in Wellington and Dunedin a week later (27 July - August 12), then in Christchurch (9 - 26 August).

For festival updates visit www.nzff.co.nz

AFTA WINNERS:

Best Feature Film: Love Story

Outstanding Feature Film Debut: Josh McKenzie, The Hopes & Dreams of Gazza Snell

Best Director in a Feature Film: Florian Habicht, Love Story

Best Lead Actor in a Feature Film: Rawiri Paratene, The Insatiable Moon

Best Lead Actress in a Feature Film: Michelle Ang, My Wedding And Other Secrets

Best Supporting Actor in a Feature Film: Greg Johnson, The Insatiable Moon

Best Supporting Actress in a Feature Film: Sara Wiseman, Matariki

Best Screenplay for a Feature Film: Roseanne Liang & Angeline Loo, My Wedding And Other Secrets

CRAFT AWARDS

Best Cinematography in a Feature Film: Simon Raby, Predicament

Best Editing in a Feature Film: Peter O'Donoghue, Love Story

Best Original Music in a Feature Film: Plan 9, Predicament

Images & Sound Best Sound in a Feature Film: Dick Reade & Gethin Creagh, After the Waterfall

Best Production Design in a Feature Film: John Harding, Predicament

Best Costume Design in a Feature Film: Lesley Burkes-Harding, Predicament

Best Make-Up Design in a Feature Film: Angela Mooar, Predicament

Best Visual Effects in a Feature Film: Sauce VFX, Predicament