Catherine Martin is the most decorated Australian in Oscars history, but you won't find her sashaying around celebrity-laden Los Angeles.
That's because she and her famous family call the Gold Coast home.
Martin and her creative and life partner, multi-award winning director Baz Luhrmann, were honoured with the Chauvel Prize at last night's Screen Industry Gala Awards on the Gold Coast.
"It's particularly meaningful to Baz and me to be honoured with the Chauvel Award here in the Gold Coast, where we have based ourselves in recent years making Elvis," Martin said, while accepting the award.
"The filmmaking community and the city has been incredibly welcoming and supportive, and we hope we'll continue to make our work here in the future."
The Chauvel Award acknowledges significant contribution to the Australian screen industry.
Previous winners include George Miller, Rolf de Heer, Bryan Brown, Deborah Mailman, Heath Ledger (posthumous) and Claudia Karvan.
Elvis — the movie that brought the family to the Gold Coast — failed to pick up any of the eight Oscars for which it was nominated at last month's Academy Awards.
It was filmed entirely on the Gold Coast between January 2020 and March 2021, aside from a break when actor Tom Hanks tested positive for COVID-19.
During the filming, Martin and her team turned parts of the city into look-alike American locations including Memphis and Graceland.
"It is certainly not the place I thought it was — white shoes, meter maids and gold bikinis — nothing could be further than the truth," Martin said.
"Who gets to walk across the road onto kilometres of unspoiled beaches, but still be able to work in a world-class facility with talented people who have an extraordinary can-do attitude?"
While the Gold Coast's movie facilities lured the powerhouse couple to the city, their reason for staying is more personal.
Martin said the region had provided a "very safe place" for their two children, now aged 18 and 20 .
"One of them suffered badly because of COVID," she said.
"Like so many adolescents, the isolation did their spirits in and they suffered a huge mental health crisis.
"The Mental Health Services here on the Gold Coast have been second-to-none and it's allowed them to thrive."
Setting up shop
Martin said living in south-east Queensland had worked for the whole family, and she and her husband were in the process of establishing a permanent, creative base in the city.
"It's really important for us to have a good home base after such a tumultuous time," she said.
Luhrmann said there continued to be huge opportunities for the industry in Australia.
"As the industry here grows beyond just shooting movies, into developing projects here and finishing them all the way through post-production, it's an exciting place to be for filmmakers — both emerging and established," he said.
Martin is the Australian with the most gold statues in her pool room, two Oscars a piece for Moulin Rouge! and The Great Gatsby.
So how does the celebrated — but Oscarless — Luhrmann feel about her success?
"Baz is extraordinarily proud," she said.
"He is committed to promoting, not only me but women collaborators in general.
"When men who are in power empower women, everybody benefits."
