Common Ventures’ James Crawley wins best documentary at annual AWGIE Awards

Common Ventures creative director and co-founder James Crawley’s debut documentary Volcano Man has taken out Best Documentary at the 56th annual Australian Writers’ Guild Awards (AWGIEs).

The annual awards, which were held last week at NIDA’s Parade Theatre, recognise and reward the outstanding achievements of Australian performance writers. The prestigious awards are the only industry nods given by writers, to writers, judged exclusively on the final script.

Volcano Man, which was written and directed by Crawley, and co-written by Tim Russell and Steven Sander, has received critical acclaim since its official premiere at last year’s Melbourne International Film Festival. The film was also selected for the Heartland International Film Festival (USA) and received a nomination for Best Feature Documentary by the Film Critics Circle of Australia (FCCA).

The documentary focuses on Crawley’s complex relationship with his eccentric father – photographer and documentarian Richard – using uncovered home videos and new interviews with those closest to him. The film aims to reveal the ‘real’ Richard Crawley, who lives atop a dormant volcano, and explores the pair’s complicated dynamic, as they grapple with life and loss.

On winning the AWGIE award, James Crawley says: “For such a personal project to be acknowledged is incredibly humbling. Processing grief is something we all have to do at some point, and the fact that others are finding meaning in the film is beyond satisfying.”

Crawley is the brains behind several award-winning TV commercials for Common Ventures, including the Australian Federal Police’s Missing Persons Day in 2019, and decided to also turn his hand to filmmaking last year.

Volcano Man is screening at Palace Cinemas nationwide and is also available to stream on DocPlay in Australia and New Zealand: https://www.docplay.com/shows/volcano-man.

To see the trailer for Volcano Man, visit commonv.com.au/work/volcano-man/

Volcano Man
A Pivot Studios and GoodThing Productions, in association with Melbourne International Film Festival’s Premiere Fund, VicScreen and Common Ventures.
Featuring music by The Black Belts
Original music and sound design by Rumble Studios
Edited by Steve Sander
Cinematography by Jamie Gray
Camera operation by Matt Cresswell
Executive producers: Nick Batzias & Virginia Whitwell
Producers: Tim Russell & Rhian Skirving
Written by James Crawley, Tim Russell and Steven Sander
Directed by James Crawley