'Snowtown', 'The Slap' dominate AACTA Awards

The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards took place in the Sydney Opera House last night.

The film and TV awards ceremony, which was renamed and relaunched this year after previously being known as the AFIs, was hosted by Geoffrey Rush and attended by stars such as Miranda Kerr, Cate Blanchett and Jacki Weaver.

Red Dog was named 'Best Film', The Eye of the Storm's Judy Davis took home the 'Best Actress' gong and Hugo Weaving took the 'Best Supporting Actor' prize for his role in Oranges and Sunshine.

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Grisly murder movie Snowtown dominated the film segment of the ceremony, with Daniel Henshall winning the 'Best Actor' title for his role as a serial killer. Louise Harris was also named 'Best Supporting Actress' and Justin Kurzel won 'Best Direction'.

Kurzel revealed to AAP that his "night was done" after Harris's triumph. He said of her: "She's an extraordinary actress, she's never acted before and her instincts are incredible."

Henshall also admitted that he was surprised to win over stars such as Rush, Willem Dafoe and David Wenham, saying: "To win, I'm bamboozled and gobsmacked and can't stop saying cracker. I'm quite speechless. This is so far from where we started.''

In the television section, ABC miniseries The Slap walked away with various awards including 'Best Direction', 'Best Screenplay' and 'Best Actor' for Alex Dimitriades.

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Watch a trailer for The Slap below (contains strong language and themes):