Long list of industry achievers recognised at Australian Event Awards 2020

October 22, 2020

Australia’s best events and strongest achievements in the events industry have been recognised at the Australian Event Awards 2020.

Presented through a series of virtual ceremonies in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth yesterday evening, video link up technology allowing the events industry across the nation to celebrate with the finalists and winners.

Commenting on the Awards, Brenda LaPorte, co-chair of the Judging Panel, stated “we were very excited to celebrate the work of the events industry by naming the Winners of the Event Awards for 2020 and choosing said Winners was an incredibly tough job.” .

Winners of the Awards’ Best Event Categories included Splendour in the Grass 2019, Paralympics Australia Infinite Possibilities Gala 2019 and Highway to Hell: Perth Festival 2020 Closing Event while there were also eight Achievement Finalists crowned as Winners last night, including Fourth Wall for EventCast, Melbourne Cricket Club and EventsAIR.

The headline categories saw individual and company finalists walk away with trophies, such as Jessica Ducrou nominated by Secret Sounds Group, Hannah Milligan nominated by The Company We Keep, Great Big Events and Phoenix Creative Management.

This year’s Ceremony also saw the comeback of the ‘Australian Event of the Year’ category.

With Best Event category winners automatically nominated for Australian Event of the Year, the winner of Best Sporting Event, ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020, walked away as the Australian Event of 2019/2020.

Peter Rix AM, Co-Chair of the judging panel commented on the standard of the winners this year, advising "congratulations to all the winners. The quality of the entries has meant a very high-scoring year, significantly higher than previous years and the judges have definitely had their work cut out for them."

The Multi-Way Event Awards Ceremony saw event professionals from all sectors come together to enjoy a bit of mystery and sparkle at the black-tie event. Live performances from RatPack Reloaded, Frolic & Follies, Michael Boyd the Illusionist, ROCKIT, Victor Martinez Parada, Mick Lindsay and Gospo Collective, entertained the National industry throughout the evening through song, dance, magic and more.

AUSTRALIAN EVENT AWARDS NATIONAL WINNERS 2020:

Best Sporting Event
ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2020

Best Tourism Event
Splendour in the Grass 2019, New South Wales

Best Charity or Cause-Related Event
Paralympics Australia Infinite Possibilities Gala 2019, This Space, New South Wales

Best Congress or Conference
Asia Pacific Cities Summit and Mayors Forum 2019, Carillon Conference Management Pty Limited, Queensland

Best Cultural, Arts or Music Event
Highway to Hell: Perth Festival 2020 Closing Event, Western Australia

Best Corporate Event
Salesforce World Tour Reimagined 2020, The Company We Keep, New South Wales

Best Exhibition, Trade or Consumer Show
PAX Australia 2019, Reed Exhibitions, Victoria

Coates Hire Best Community Event
North Australian Festival of Arts 2019, Townsville City Council, Queensland

Best Small Event
Island Whale Festival 2019, Destination Phillip Island Inc, Victoria

Best New Event
Outback Queensland Masters 2019, Golf Australia, Cre8ion, Weatherall Golf and Krista Hauritz Tourism and Events, Queensland

Best Regional Event
Travelling Light 2019, illuminart Australia, South Australia

Best Achievement in Design, Look or Theming
Public Art Australia for their work on Océan en Voie D’illumination 2019/2020

Best Achievement in Marketing, Communication or Sponsorship
Krista Hauritz Tourism & Events for their work on Stanthorpe Apple and Grape Festival 2020

Best Technical Achievement or Innovation
EvenstAIR for their work on 2019/20 Congresses and Events

Best Achievement in Venue Management
Melbourne Cricket Club for their work at the MCG

Best New Product
Fourth Wall for EventCast™

Best Event Service
Event & Sports Projects Australia Pty Ltd for their work in Group Ticketing & Transport Operations and Communications Service

Best Achievement in Event Education or Training
Australian Marketing Institute for their Virtual Event Best Practice & Ideas Course

Best Achievement in Entertainment
Michael Cassel Group for their work on The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo - Sydney 2019

Young Achiever of the Year
Hannah Milligan nominated by The Company We Keep

Event Producer of the Year
Jessica Ducrou nominated by Secret Sounds Group

Small Event Management Company of the Year
Phoenix Creative Management

Event Management Company of the Year
Great Big Events

Click here for the full list of Finalists and Winners for 2020.

Images: Opening ceremony for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 (top, courtesy of The P.A. People) and Splendour in the Grass 2019 (below).

22nd October 2020 - Harvey Lister thanks industry following Australian Event Awards lifetime achievement award

20th October 2020 - Harvey Lister to receive Lifetime Achievement Award at Australian Event Awards

16th October 2020 - TEG allies with Empire Touring to produce Australia-wide tours and events

16th October 2020 - Event manager Wendy Lacey highlights the importance of event preparation

14th October 2020 - Australian Event Awards team acknowledge industry support

14th October 2020 - Industry comes together to assess impact of COVID-19 on the events and entertainment industry

4th October 2020 - Australian Open looks for 2021 event to run at half capacity

2nd October 2020 - The P.A. People looks back on the legacy of Australia’s greatest sporting event

2nd October 2020 - Venues in 25 nations light up red to back #WeMakeEvents initiative

28th September 2020 - Regional Victoria secures leading amateur road cycling event for 2025

24th September 2020 - Australia joins international initiative to highlight the live events sector urgently needs Government support

21st September 2020 - ‘Create an Experience’ campaign highlights that the Australian events industry is open for business

11th September 2020 - Australian business events industry welcomes $50 million funding announcement

10th September 2020 - Applications closing for Tourism Australia’s Business Events Boost Program 

26th August 2020 - Australian Event Awards announce finalists for 2020

22nd December 2019 - ICC continues partnership with UNICEF for Women’s T20 World Cup 2020

13th November 2019 - Victorians urged to fill the MCG for Women’s T20 World Cup final

23rd November 2018 - Australian Event Awards Winners revealed

20th November 2018 - Sydney Royal Easter Show Innovative Program nominated for Australian Event Award

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