The Sidney prize is an annual literary award to recognise outstanding works of fiction. It has a long history and is accompanied by an annual lecture. The prize was founded in 1921 and is one of Australia’s oldest literary awards. The prize is awarded to a short story, and the winner receives $5000 while two runners up each win $1500. The judges of the prize choose a shortlist of eight stories from over 500 entries. The winner and runners-up are published in Overland magazine.
The Sydney Film Festival awards many prestigious prizes each year to films in the Official Competition line-up. Each award has a name associated with it and is presented at a special ceremony during the festival. The festival also gives out an honourable mention to a lesser-known film that deserves recognition. All the prizes are designed and made in Sydney by Louise Olsen and Stephen Ormandy of Dinosaur Designs. They are all mesmerising swirls that are reminiscent of Sydney’s architecture and coastline.
Among the most prestigious Sydney prizes is the Archibald Prize, which was created in 1921 to honour artistic achievements in art, letters, science and literature. It was created in the memory of Sir William Beckwith McInnes, who won the inaugural award with his portrait of Harold Desbrowe Annear. Since then, the prize has been awarded to a wide range of artists and authors. The Sidney prize is given in various categories and has a number of criteria that the work must satisfy to be considered for the award. It is awarded to works that demonstrate the highest level of creativity and talent. The prize has a very long and rich history and the winners are presented with a magnificent mesmerising swirl award that is made in Sydney by Dinosaur Designs.
Another Sydney prize is the Hillman Prize, which is awarded to journalists who write socially-conscious journalism that fosters industrial democracy and a just society. The Hillman Foundation has been working for more than six decades to illuminate critical issues for workers, and seek equitable solutions to help them. The foundation was established by the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America (ACWA) and others.
In 1985, the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee began designating Notable Books (originally called The Best of the Bunch). These are books that were not chosen as a Sydney Taylor Book Award winner but deemed worthy of attention. The committee’s list of Notable Books from 1985-2011 can be found online.
The Sydney Peace Prize is an annual award to honour inspiring peacemakers and bring the community together to discuss issues of concern. The award is presented by the Sydney Film Festival and is sponsored by WestWords Western Sydney Emerging Writer Fellowship and the Malcolm Robertson Foundation.
