The busker ... Raymond Borzelli. Source: Supplied
- 85-year-old star of Better Than Sinatra was a clear crowd favourite
- Sam Worthington announced an impromptu new $3000 award
- Filmmaker Nicholas Clifford contributed a further $2000
DANCING pensioner Raymond Borzelli wasn't at the Domain on Sunday night to hear Tropfest celebrity judge Sam Worthington announce a special, $3000 award in his honour.
"It was such a beautiful day, I went down to the Rocks and danced there. By the time 5 o'clock came I was so tired I had to go home," Borzelli said yesterday.
"I know it was a big occasion and it's hard luck I wasn't there but I have got to look after my health."
The 85-year-old star of Better Than Sinatra, runner-up for best film, was a clear favourite with the 90,000-strong crowd that turned out for this year's final Tropfest in the Domain - the annual event has been brought forward to December 8, in a bid to avoid a repeat of last year's washout, and relocated to Centennial Park to accommodate its growing size.
The title of director Jefferson Grainger's deceptively simple documentary comes from Borzelli's straight-faced claim that he is a better singer than Frank Sinatra, as well as being taller, more good looking and more masculine.
Before presenting the prize for best film to Victorian filmmaker Nicholas Clifford, director of We've All Been There, Worthington announced an impromptu new award to acknowledge Borzelli's unique skill set.
The Avatar star said he intended to stump up $3000 - the same amount Nicole Kidman donated for best actor and actress - for a new category: best personality in a documentary.
And Clifford was so impressed by his charismatic co-competitor, he decided to contribute a further $2000 from his hard-won $10,000 prize money.
Back at another of his regular haunts, near the Archibald Fountain in Hyde Park, Borzelli agreed that the cash would come in handy, since his $290-a-week pension didn't stretch very far.
But the light-footed octagenarian, who lives in a housing commission flat in Balmain, wasn't revealing exactly what he would spend it on.
"That's a rather personal question. I'm not in a position to tell anybody what I am going to do with my money," he said.
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