Australian actress Margot Robbie has secured the first part of a potential sweep of awards season for her stunning work on the film I, Tonya.
Robbie defeated Dame Judi Dench, Sally Hawkins, Frances McDormand and Saorise Ronan to take home best actress at the 7th annual AACTA International Awards in Los Angeles.
Still ahead for Robbie are nominations at the Golden Globe Awards and the Screen Actors Guild Awards - and even a possible Oscar nomination - for her performance as controversial skater Tonya Harding.
But three other Australian A-list nominees - Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman and Ben Mendelsohn - came up empty handed.
Jackman (Logan) lost out in the best lead actor category to Gary Oldman, Kidman (The Killing of a Sacred Deer) was pipped for the best supporting actress award by Alison Janney and Mendelsohn beaten by Sam Rockwell for best supporting actor.
"???This is a beauty," Oldman said of the AACTA statue; the actor said he was "deeply honoured" to receive the award and paid tribute to Australia's contribution to international film-making.
Kidman did take to the stage to accept in person her two AACTA awards, won late last year for her work on Lion and Top of the Lake: China Girl.
"I started working at 14 years old, I did a film called Bush Christmas and then BMX Bandits," Kidman said. "And I'm still around. It's crazy."
Kidman paid tribute to the directors who believed in her, notably and recently Garth Davis who she said had fought to get her the role in Lion.
That, Kidman said, "is a story unto itself."
"He did it and he got me in that film," she said. "I've had so many people believe in me and give me chances. I'm so glad to be able to say thank you to you all.???"???
???Josh Thomas, who was a presenter, used his moment in the spotlight to pitch the audience for a boyfriend; the newly single writer/comedian confirmed he had moved to Los Angeles just two weeks ago.
"I've been going out on dates for two weeks ... and I'm finding myself quite miserable," Thomas said. "They have zero per cent body fat and while I'm quite slim, it's like custard."
Thomas's somewhat distinct humour travelled surprisingly well, with the audience of mostly American film and television executives ???laughing along.
???As a forward-pointing predictor of potential Oscar success, the LA AACTAs gave their strongest push to Martin McDonagh's black comedy Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.
Three Billboards won three LA AACTA categories: best film, best screenplay for writer-director McDonagh (he lost direction to Dunkirk's Christopher Nolan) and best supporting actor for Rockwell.
In securing best film, Three Billboards edged out four other nominees: Luca Guadagnino's Call Me By Your Name, Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, Greta Gerwig's Lady Bird and Guillermo del Toro's The Shape of Water.
The AACTA International Awards are given out by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts and recognise excellence in film, direction, screenwriting and screen performance.
The event was hosted by Hugh Sheridan, and the presenters included Jai Courtney, Josh Lawson, Mallory Jansen, Liam McIntyre, Daniel MacPherson, Josh Thomas and director Phillip Noyce.
The VIP guest list included Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban, Hugh Jackman, Gary Oldman, Sam Rockwell, Abbie Cornish, Samara Weaving and Radha Mitchell.
The event was held at LA's historic Avalon, a venue which traces its history back to the 1920s and has, in various forms, been the stage for some of Hollywood's most famous names including Ginger Rogers, Liberace and Louis Armstrong.
Film "awards season" falls between November and February and includes approximately a dozen key events including the Gotham awards, the New York and Los Angeles Film Critics Circle awards, the Golden Globes, the Producers, Screen Actors and Directors Guild awards, the British Academy Film Awards and the Academy Awards.
The Academy Award nominations are announced on January 23; the winners are announced at the 90th annual Academy Awards on Sunday, March 4.
The 7th annual AACTA International Awards will air at 8.30pm on Sunday, January 7 on Foxtel Arts, and will be repeated on January 8 and10.
WINNERS
Best film: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Best direction: Christopher Nolan, Dunkirk
Best screenplay: Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Best lead actor: Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour
Best lead actress: Margot Robbie, I, Tonya
Best supporting actor: Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Best supporting actress: Alison Janney, I, Tonya
