Sarah Ann Watt (30 August 19584 November 2011) was an Australian film director, writer, and animator. She is especially known for her 2005 film '' Look Both Ways''.

Early life and education

Sarah Ann Watt was born in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

on 30 August 1958. She completed a Graduate Diploma of Film and Television (Animation) at the Swinburne Film and Television School,

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, in 1990. Her student film ''Catch of the Day'' was to reflect the style of future work.

Career

In 1995, she directed a short film, ''Small Treasures'', which won Best Short Film at the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

. In 2000, she made a program for the SBS series ''Swim Between the Flags ''called "''Local Dive''". It was made concurrently with another project that she was directing called "''The Way of the Birds''" based on the 1996 book of the same name by author Meme McDonald. She received the

Australian Film Institute The Australian Film Institute (AFI) was founded in 1958 as a non-profit organisation devoted to developing an active film culture in Australia and fostering engagement between the general public and the Cinema of Australia, Australian film indu ...

's award for Best Director for her 2005 film '' Look Both Ways''. Watt returned to the

Victorian College of the Arts The Victorian College of the Arts (VCA) is the arts school at the University of Melbourne in Australia. It is part of the university's Faculty of Fine Arts and Music (FFAM). It is located near the Melbourne city centre on the Southbank campus ...

School of Film and Television to teach animation, and assisted in the development of many animators, including

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

winner Adam Elliot in 1996. Watt was instrumental in the development of scripts for all of her students, but left the school to further develop her own projects, returning on occasion as a script and final production assessor. Watt was also a published author. She wrote and illustrated the picture book ''Clem Always Could'' and co-authored ''Worse Things Happen at Sea'' with William McInnes. During the post-production of '' Look Both Ways'', Watt was diagnosed with cancer. Her second film '' My Year Without Sex'' was released in 2009. She died on 4 November 2011 after suffering for six years from

breast The breasts are two prominences located on the upper ventral region of the torso among humans and other primates. Both sexes develop breasts from the same embryology, embryological tissues. The relative size and development of the breasts is ...

and

bone cancer A bone tumor is an neoplastic, abnormal growth of tissue in bone, traditionally classified as benign, noncancerous (benign) or malignant, cancerous (malignant). Cancerous bone tumors usually originate from a cancer in another part of the body su ...

, aged 53."Australian filmmaker Sarah Watt dies"

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

, Retrieved 6 November 2011 Sarah Watt was married to actor and writer William McInnes. They have two children, Clem (b. 1993) and Stella (b. 1998). In the years before her death, Watt had begun developing an animated adaptation of ''Magic Beach'', the beloved picture book by Australian author

Alison Lester Alison Jean Lester (born 17 November 1952) is an Australian author and illustrator who has published over 25 children's picture books and two young adult novels — ''The Quickstand Pony'' and ''The Snow Pony''. In 2005 Lester won the Child ...

. The project was considered a personal passion of Watt’s, blending her talent for evocative, painterly visuals with Lester's whimsical storytelling. Following Watt’s death, the project was revived and brought to life by director Robert Connolly, who completed the film in her honor. The adaptation of ''Magic Beach'' was released in 2025 as a feature-length animated film, receiving praise for its emotional depth and its tribute to Watt's original vision.

Awards

Won

* 2013- Byron Kennedy Award at the

AACTA Awards The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards, known as the AACTA Awards, are presented annually by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). The awards recognise excellence in the cinema of Australia, film and ...

* 2009- Grass Award at the

Australian Directors Guild The Australian Directors' Guild (ADG) is an industry guild representing the interests of film, television, commercials and digital media directors, including documentary makers and animators, throughout Australia. With its headquarters in Sydney ...

for My Year Without Sex * 2006- Best Direction of a First Feature Film at the Australian Screen Directors' Association Awards (now the

) for Look Both Ways * 2006- Best Screenplay at the Mar del Plata Film Festival for Look Both Ways * 2006- Propeller of Motovum at the Motovun Film Festival for Look Both Ways * 2006- Critics Award at the NatFilm Festival for Look Both Ways * 2006- KNF Award at the

Rotterdam International Film Festival International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) is an annual film festival held at the end of January in various locations in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, focused on independent and experimental films. The inaugural festival took place in June 1972, ...

for Look Both Ways * 2005- Best Direction at the Australian Film Institute Awards (now the

) for Look Both Ways * 2005-

Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award (also known as an Oscar) for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best ...

at the Australian Film Institute Awards (now the

) for Look Both Ways * 2005- Best Film at the Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards for Look Both Ways * 2005- Best Director at the Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards for Look Both Ways * 2005- Best Screenplay- Original at the Film Critics Circle of Australia for Look Both Ways * 2005- Best Direction at the Inside Film Awards for Look Both Ways * 2005- Best Script at the Inside Film Awards for Look Both Ways * 2005- FIPRESCI Prize at the Brisbane International Film Festival for Look Both Ways * 2001- Best Short Animation at the Australian Film Institute Awards (now the

) for ''Living with Happiness'' * 1996- Special Jury Prize at the Hiroshima International Animation Festival for ''Small Treasures'' * 1995- OCIC Award at the

Melbourne International Film Festival The Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) is an annual film festival held over three weeks in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was founded in 1952 and is one of the oldest film festivals in the world following the founding of the Venic ...

for ''Small Treasures''

Nominated

* 2009- Best Screenplay- Original at the Australian Film Institute Awards (now the

) for My Year Without Sex * 2006- Best Film at the

Mar del Plata Film Festival The Mar del Plata International Film Festival () is an List of film festivals, international film festival that takes place every November in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina. It is the only competitive feature festival recognized by the FIAPF ...

for Look Both Ways * 2005- Best Feature at the

Chicago International Film Festival The Chicago International Film Festival is an annual film festival held every fall. Founded in 1964 by Michael Kutza, it is the longest-running competitive film festival in North America. Its logo is a stark, black and white close up of the comp ...

for Look Both Ways * 2005- Screen International Award at the

European Film Awards The European Film Awards (or European Film Academy Awards) have been presented annually since 1988 by the European Film Academy to recognize excellence in European cinematic achievements. The awards are given in 19 categories, of which the mos ...

for Look Both Ways * 2005- Best Feature Film at the Inside Film Awards for Look Both Ways * 2000- Best Short Animation Film at the Australian Film Institute Awards (now the

) for ''The Way of the Birds'' * 1995- Best Short Film at the

for ''Small Treasures''

References

External links

*
When I'm gone ...
''The Age'', 21 October 2011
'Look Both Ways'
(2005) on ''

Australian Screen Online The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting, and providing access to a national c ...

'' *
Small Treasures
' (1995) on ''Australian Screen'' ''Online'' *
Living with Happiness
' (2001) on ''

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Watt, Sarah 1958 births 2011 deaths Australian film directors Australian animated film directors Women animated film directors Australian women film directors Australian women animators Australian animators Australian women writers Australian writers Swinburne University of Technology alumni Deaths from breast cancer in Australia Deaths from bone cancer Deaths from cancer in Victoria (state)