REUTERS - Oscar-winning Australian film stars Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe, and Geoffrey Rush attended the first ever Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) awards on Friday (January 27), giving Hollywood's famed awards season a casual "down under" soiree.

"There's so many of us working now around the world, so it's just nice to be able to support them," says Kidman. "You have all these parties, but none of them are actually hosted by Australians, and we do that better," says Crowe, on awards season.

"Ideally we would have had a barbecue out on the footpath, but SoHo House is much more charming," admitted actor Geoffrey Rush. The three were joined on the red carpet by fellow Oscar winners Kathy Bates and Meryl Streep, who is nominated this year for "Iron Lady," as well as the cast of "The Artist."