'Snakeskin' cruises into top film spot

The road movie 'Snakeskin' has been voted Best Film at last night's New Zealand Film Awards.

On the night, the Gillian Ashurst-directed film scooped a total of six awards. Producer Vanessa Sheldrick accepted its Best Film award.

Best Director prize went to 'Stickmen' helmsman Hamish Rothwell, and 'Stickmen' also picked up two other major awards, Best Screenplay (Nick Ward) and Best Actor (Scott Wills).

'Rain' star Sarah Peirse was voted Best Actress.

Between them, Snakeskin, Stickmen and Rain had dominated the nominations, and it seemed it was only a matter of sorting out who got what, between the three.

Among those snubbed last night was Temuera Morrison for his portrayal of the male lead in the film 'Crooked Earth', the so-called 'Maori western'.

Snakeskin's Melanie Lynskey had been expected to run Sarah Peirse hard for the Best Actress award.

The two had been co-stars in Peter Jackson's 1994 hit 'Heavenly Creatures', but this year's awards pitted them in competition with each other.

Lynskey had many supporters, but the jury, consisting of industry experts and members of the New Zealand Academy of Film and Television Arts (AFTA), opted instead to go with Peirse, the star of Christine Jeffs' coming-of-age drama, Rain.