Cornel Wilczek, Megan Washington and Bluey composer Joff Bush were in the winners’ circle Tuesday night, Oct. 28, as the 2025 Screen Music Awards were presented in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley.
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With two donut-shaped trophies, Wilczek, the Melbourne-based composer, was the big winner on the night, taking out best music for a television drama (Fake) alongside 2024 emerging screen composer of the year champion Alex Olijnyk; plus best opening title television theme with Thomas Rouch for the Netflix adaptation of the Jane Harper book, The Survivors.
Washington, winner of several ARIA Awards, including best female artist back in 2010, now has a Screen Music Award for her collection. The homegrown talent won for best original song composed for the Screen with “Dream On,” lifted from How to Make Gravy, the film adaptation of Paul Kelly’s iconic Christmas song.
The gravy kept flowing as Electric Fields, who performed the song in the movie, closed the evening with a stunning performance, accompanied by a choir led by Deline Briscoe.
Another Queensland creative, the celebrated children’s screen composer, Joff Bush, scooped most performed screen composer – overseas category for his work on Bluey, the most-streamed show in the US in 2024. Bush won the same category in 2023.
And Adam Gock and Dinesh Wicks extended their impressive streak, taking out most performed screen composer – Australia for the 11th time, thanks to their work on Farmer Wants a Wife, LEGO Masters, MasterChef and Travel Guides.
Jed Kurzel nabbed feature film score of the year for the British period action-drama Tornado, his fourth win in the category after Monkey Man (2024), Slow West (2015) and Snowtown (2011).
Veteran screen composer Christopher Gordon was awarded the coveted distinguished services to the Australian screen award in recognition of his “extraordinary body of work and enduring contribution to the screen music industry.”
Legendary Australian director Bruce Beresford was on hand to present the trophy to Gordon, with he has collaborated on several acclaimed films including Ladies in Black and Mao’s Last Dancer.
“I feel like such an imposter, there are so many people worthy of this award,” Gordon remarked, before exploring his self-destructive 20s and how he got a fresh, healthier mindset through his connections with the Screen Writers Guild. “I got my life together.” He continued, “the support that I felt and the sense of community with other composers was extremely important for me.” He also discussed the drought he experienced between film scores, something every creative needs to prepare for. “You really need patience in this business.”
Stage and screen star David Wenham hosted the ceremony alongside Mark Coles Smith and Nathalie Morris, with Erkki Veltheim returning as music director, helming a live orchestra performing selections from nominated works.
The evening got away with a Halloween trick, with a creepy piece set to a gory edit from the horror film Wolf Creek, which this year celebrates its 20th anniversary.
Wenham would describe the moment as “probably the most terrifying opening to an awards, ever.” It was a good thing the hundreds of guests at Fortitude Music Hall had finished their dinner.
Presented for the first time in the Sunshine State, the annual ceremony is an initiative of APRA AMCOS and the Australian Guild of Screen Composers (AGSC).
During his third and final speech leading the AGSC as president, Dale Cornelius touched on streaming quotas, AI, the human condition and more. Cornelius will hand the reins over to composer and Go-Betweens great Amanda Brown, who was in the audience, but not before he returned to the stage to collect the win for best music for a short film, for The Way Home.
Timing is everything. And, with the federal government on Monday ruling out a controversial proposed exemption to the Copyright Act that would allow for text and data mining, the timing wasn’t lost on guests and speakers.
“This is a massive win,” Jenny Morris, chair of APRA AMCOS, remarked from the podium. And not just for APRA AMCOS members, “but for every creator in the room and the country.” She continued, “We said ‘no.’ And importantly, we said no together…when we unite, when we speak with one voice, we are unstoppable.”
The music community, she continued, had real cause to celebrate after a such an “historic” victory.
