The Irish funnyman has landed a Best Actor nod for playing the manager of an Australian girl group in the comedy, while his co-stars Deborah Mailman and Jessica Mauboy were respectively nominated for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress.
Bridesmaids star O’Dowd faces stiff competition for the Best Actor prize, going up against Guy Pearce (33 Postcards), Joel Edgerton (Wish You Were Here) and Matthew Goode (Burning Man).
Best Actress hopeful Mailman will do battle with Hollywood’s Toni Collette for her role in Mental, as well as Felicity Price (Wish You Were Here) and Sarah Snook (Not Suitable For Children).
The Sapphires is also nominated in the Best Direction and Best Film categories, as well as Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Cinematography, among others. Other Best Film contenders include German drama Lore, Wish You Were Here and Burning Man.
The prizegiving will be held in Sydney next January (13).
