Unity verses diversity, the social disablement of UnAustralian national cinema during the 1990s

In 1999 when Bryan Brown won the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Pando in Two Hands (1999) his acceptance speech commended several Australian actors for contributing to Australian cinema and the ‘Australian identity’. He begins with Jack Thompson and ends with “the great Chips Rafferty”. Although the list is long he excludes Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman, the two most internationally successful ‘Australian’ actors at the time. Later that evening while presenting an award Crowe, who looked annoyed during Brown’s speech, connects Australian cinema with Hollywood claiming that Australian actors who manage to succeed in Hollywood, are not any less Australian - they actually “amplify the broad nature - and infinite nature - of Australian screen culture.