Alethea Jones wins at wet Tropfest

Only a few hundred people braved the wet weather in Sydney to hear Alethea Jones' name announced as the 2012 Tropfest winner and founder John Polson is now considering moving the date of the film festival to avoid February rains.

Jones, who hails from Victoria, won for her short film Lemonade Stand and hoped the win would lead to some more directing gigs.

"I registered for Centrelink two weeks ago, so maybe, maybe I might get a job this year as a director. Maybe. Just one job will be awesome," she told AAP.

Second place was awarded to Boo by Rupert Reid, which also won the Telstra Crowd Pleaser, and third place went to Michael Noonan's Photo Booth.

In the lead-up to the screenings on Sunday, crowds had packed into Sydney's then sunny Domain, where the main event was taking place and being televised live across the country.

A stellar line-up of judges, including Nicole Kidman, Toni Collette, Cate Blanchett and Geoffrey Rush, had settled into their seats in the VIP undercover area and the 16 short film finalists began to play.

The rain began after only a few films played, but quickly became a heavy downpour, along with thunder and lightning.

By the end of the night, the numbers definitely had dwindled, but the crowds persisted for a remarkable amount of time - something that didn't go unnoticed by Polson.

"I couldn't believe it, in the pouring rain, that people would stay and watch these films," he said. "I was so impressed with the judges that they didn't sort of become divas and want to go home...

"(So) in some ways it's disappointing when this happens but it also reminds you how important this is, that even torrential rain isn't going to stop Tropfest."

Now that the 20th anniversary is over, the first thing Polson said he's going to do is consider whether February, a "notoriously wet month", is the right month for Tropfest.

"We might be looking at moving it," he said.

Tropfest judges, directors speak to SBS' Manny Tsigas: