AACTA Announces the Nominees for the Audience Choice Award for Best Digital Creator

THE VOTES ARE IN – THE AACTA AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD NOMINEE FOR BEST DIGITAL CREATOR HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED 

AACTA is excited to announce the six nominees vying for the 2022 AACTA Audience Choice Award for Best Digital Creator. As voted by Australians, the results show the nation’s favourite Digital Creators who collectively boast over 19 million followers and produce content watched by millions around the globe. The nominees will be celebrated at the 2022 AACTA Awards Ceremony presented by Foxtel Group, at The Hordern in Sydney’s iconic Entertainment Quarter.

The six nominees for the AACTA Audience Choice Award for Best Digital Creator are:

• Anna Paul
• Esmé Louise James
• Jeff van de Zandt
• Kat Clark
• Luke and Sassy Scott
• Sooshi Mango

AACTA Awards and Industry Development Manager, Ivan Vukusic said, “These six creators and creator teams are some of the most engaging Australian personalities on our screens, and we congratulate them on their nomination. As pioneers in the online space, they keep their fingers on the pulse, and reflect current events and trends in real time. Appearing on this shortlist is testament to not only their hard work and creativity, but also to the relationship they have built with their loyal fans who have secured them this nomination via the public vote. Congratulations again, and we can’t wait to see your vlogs from the AACTA Awards.”

A TikTok Spokesperson said, “Congratulations to all the incredible creators who have been nominated this year. We are especially proud our diverse TikTok creators who have been recognised for the amazing talent! Best of luck to all the finalists!”

A short introduction to each nominee is below.

ANNA PAUL 

Boasting almost 6 million TikTok followers, Anna Paul is one of the top online creators in Australia. Her followers tune in to her daily vlogs, her adventures abroad, food reviews and what she gets up to with her brother Atis and boyfriend, Glen Tomson. As well as being a TikTok success, Anna is one of the top creators across multiple social platforms and invites her followers to understand what life is like having a less conventional job.  

ESMÉ LOUISE JAMES

A PhD candidate at the University of Melbourne, Esmé Louise James is an author and social media personality recognisable as the creator and face of online series Kinky History.  Drawing from her thesis which explores the emerging genre of the pornographic novel in the eighteenth-century, Esmé’s short, insightful videos sometimes feature her mother Dr. Susan James, who is a statistician/mathematician at the University of Melbourne. With more than 2 million TikTok followers, Esmé says that she shares "the history they didn't teach you in high school".

JEFF VAN DE ZANDT

Jeff van de Zandt is an actor, creative art director, and one of the country’s most prolific content creators. Jeff shot to fame in early 2020 during the first of Australia’s lockdown days, when his impersonations, sketches, and lip-syncing videos to Dan Andrew’s press conferences - providing many with a much-needed laugh during the difficult period. Jeff has almost 2 million likes on TikTok, and just as many wigs.

KAT CLARK

Kat Clark is an Aussie TikTok sensation hailing from the Gold Coast. As a weight loss and fitness coach, Kat began posting videos on TikTok giving her followers health and nutrition advice. However, it is her candid vlogs featuring her two daughters, Deja and Latisha, that has seen her garner over three million followers. Whilst often bubbly and humorous, Kat’s reflection on her life as a young mum, and as a woman who has experienced domestic violence, has moved and inspired her followers. Kat has also been nominated for the Creator of the Year Award at TikTok’s For You Fest.

LUKE AND SASSY SCOTT

Melbourne brothers Luke and Scott O’Halloran, known on the internet as Luke and Sassy Scott, have over 2 million TikTok followers. Their sibling antics are often the inspiration for their content, which includes pranks, vlogs, and dares. With a dedicated fanbase, including global superstars Rita Ora and Selena Gomez, the duo is also up for the Creator of the Year Award at TikTok’s For You Fest.

SOOSHI MANGO

The 2021 AACTA Award for Favourite Digital Comedy Creator was taken out by comedy troupe Sooshi Mango, who once again, grace the nominees for this year’s Digital Creator Award. Made up of brothers Joe and Carlo Salanitri and their close friend Andrew Manfre, the boys from Melbourne have spent a large part of 2022 adapting their online comedy sketches for the stage, touring ‘Off The Boat’ to sold out shows across Australia. When they’re not touring the stage, the boys make videos that accrue millions of likes and record the Sooshi Mango Saucy Meatballs Podcast.

The winners will be announced at the 2022 AACTA Awards presented by Foxtel Group Ceremony, on Wednesday December 7 in addition to the remaining audience choice and peer-voted awards. Wednesday’s ceremony will be broadcast on 10, at 7.30pm, and will be encored on Fox Docos, Saturday, December 10 at 7:30pm. The broadcast will also be available to stream on demand via Foxtel, Binge and AACTA TV. 

The nominees for the AACTA Award for Best Digital Series or Channel and the AACTA Award for Best Digital Short Video, determined by voting AACTA Members, were announced earlier this month. 

View the nominees here.