Australia

The Oscar-nominated 1979 film My Brilliant Career stars Judy Davis, as a young woman growing up in rural Australia at the end of the 19th century. Film critic John Powers gives Davis credit for creating the template for the Australian screen actress: bravery, incandescence, and occasional cussedness.

In the film Animal Kingdom, Australian actress Jacki Weaver plays the matriarch of a criminal family who has a twisted relationship with her sons. Weaver and Animal Kingdom's director David Michod discuss their unglamorous portrayal of a crime syndicate.

Josh Thomas, 27, stars in the show geared toward 20-somethings on the new cable channel Pivot. He talks about coming out to his dad via text message and dealing with his mom's suicide attempts.

George Miller's latest Mad Max film, Fury Road, has been nominated for 10 Academy Awards, but the director still isn't sure how the movie will hold up over time.

Mid-Thirties Single Scene, the new album by the Australian group Scott and Charlene's Wedding, describes the thoughts and actions of a character who has just turned 34. Critic Ken Tucker has a review.

In the HBO series, which was adapted from Stephen King's novel, the Australian actor plays a detective trying to solve a murder — and resisting the idea that the killer may be a supernatural entity.

While her friends and family went to the Australian beaches, Kidman stayed indoors reading — and imaged herself as a character in the books. She says reading is what led her to acting. We talk with the Oscar-winning actor about ageism in Hollywood, singing in a cover band as a teenager, and playing Lucille Ball in Being the Ricardos.