Oliver Ackland has become the first recipient of the Heath Ledger Scholarship.
The award was set up by Ledger's ex-partner Michelle Williams and friends after the sudden death of the actor last January to help Australian actor forge a career in Hollywood.
The award was presented to the twenty nine year old actor at an award ceremony in Los Angeles, the actor also received a $10,000 bursary.
Speaking to the BBC Ackland said: "I admired Heath and I admired the work that he chose, the path he created for himself. It shows a lot of integrity on his behalf."
Some of the biggest names from Australian cinema have got behind the award with the likes of Naomi Watts, Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman all contributing to the bursary.
Ledger passed away from an accidental overdose in January 2008. However he was the favourite to win the Best Supporting Actor at last night's Oscars.
Picking up the award made it a clean sweep of all the major gongs with his role as the Joker being recognised at the Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild and the Baftas.
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