Michelle Lehman (NSW) was awarded first prize at Sony Tropfest 2008 this evening by a panel of celebrity judges for Marry Me.

Audiences of over 150,000 enjoyed wine and picnics across Australia as the 16 finalist films were beamed live via satellite to venues in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Perth, Hobart, Adelaide and Brisbane, plus 8 regional locations. The heart of the evening was a touching tribute to Heath Ledger.

The panel of six celebrity judges included Naomi Watts, Geoffrey Rush, Gillian Armstrong, Ray Lawrence, Claudia Karvan and last year's winner Steve Baker as well as Australian identities Bryan Brown, Joel Edgerton and Noah Taylor.




The winners were:

FIRST PRIZE
Film: Marry Me
Director: Michelle Lehman
State: NSW
Presented by: Geoffrey Rush

SECOND PRIZE - RUNNER UP
Film: Uncle Jonny
Director: Mark Constable
State: VIC
Presented by: Gillian Armstrong

THIRD PRIZE
Film: Great White Hunters
Director: Gary Doust
State: NSW
Presented by: Ray Lawrence

BALANCE WATER WOMEN IN FILM AWARD
Film: Glass
Director: Jayne Montague
State: NSW
Presented by: Naomi Watts

SONY FOUNDATION YOUNG TALENT AWARD
Film: The Code
Director: Murray Fahey
Actor: Shardyn Fahey-Leigh
State: NSW
Presented by: Jacob Bicknell

BEST MALE ACTOR
Film: Smitten
Director: Grey Rogers
Actor: Andrew Gilmore
State: QLD
Presented by: Bryan Brown

BEST FEMALE ACTOR
Film: Marry Me
Director: Michelle Lehman
Actress: Jahla Bryant
State: NSW
Presented by: Claudia Karvan

BEST COMEDY
Film: Great White Hunters
Director: Gary Doust
State: NSW
Presented by: Jamie Row

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Film: Glass
Cinematographer: Carl Robertson
Director: Jayne Montague
State: NSW

BEST SCREENPLAY
Film: Looped
Director: Sarah Crowest
State: SA
Presented by: Jeremy Podeswa

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Film: White Lines
Director: Craig MacLean
Winner: Craig MacLean
State: VIC
Presented by: Joel Edgerton

BEST EDITING
Film: Scab
Director: Koichi Iguchi
Winners: Junya Otsuka / Takauki Mori
Country: Japan

BEST ANIMATION AWARD
Film: Fault
Director: Daniel Miller
State: ACT

THE TROPICANA AWARD
Film: Scab
Director: Koichi Iguchi
Country: Japan
Presented by: Noah Taylor

THE BRIGHT SPARK AWARDS
Film: My Brother, My Sanctuary
Director: Johnny Tran
Film: Loveless
Director: Karl Madderoom
Film: Spider
Director: Steven Woodburn

The free official Sony Tropfest 2008 DVD featuring all 16 finalist films will be available in the Saturday 23 February edition of The Sydney Morning Herald.

On Thursday 22nd March 2008 the Nine Network will air The Best of Sony Tropfest 2008 which will showcase finalist films, filmmaker interviews and festival highlights.