It's starting to look a lot like 1998 all over again for James Cameron. The director, who'll soon be needing a mantelpiece extension, has followed up Avatar's Golden Globes success by winning Filmmaker of the Year at the Richard Attenborough Film Awards and looks a lot like exceeding Titanic's mega-haul of prizes.
The awards, voted for by the UK's regional media, also showered glory on Pixar's Up, which won Film of the Year, and Up In The Air's writing team of Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, who collected Screenwriter of the Year. That singular 'writer' might prove contentious, we think, bearing in mind rumours of bickering over the script's genesis.
While James Cameron's mighty **Avatar **continues to serenely hoover up box-office takings and awards like some kind of giant blue hoovering thing, a high-calibre sci-fi of more modest means, Duncan Jones' Moon, is also receiving richly-deserved awards recognition. As a possible (but sadly, unlikely) precursor to Oscar nomination, Sam Rockwell won Best Actor for his magnetic turn as lost-in-space miner Sam Bell.
Carey Mulligan, meanwhile, won Best Actress for her terrific performance as teenage ingénue Jenny in An Education, while there was a special gong for the man who gave the awards their name, Richard Attenborough, who was honoured with the modestly-titled All Time Legend award.
The Richard Attenborough Film Award winners in full:
Film of the Year:* *Up
Filmmaker of the Year: James Cameron*
*Performance of the Year by an Actor: Sam Rockwell, Moon
Performance of the Year by an Actress: Carey Mulligan, An Education*
*Screenwriter of the Year: Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, Up In The Air
Rising Star: Carey Mulligan, **An Education
**All Time Legend: Richard Attenborough