Hong Kong drama bags nominations at Golden Horse Awards

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan’s annual Golden Horse Awards kicked off Saturday with a Hong Kong drama receiving the most nominations for the Asian equivalent of the Academy Awards.

The Golden Horse Awards, which began in 1962, is considered one of the most prestigious awards for Chinese-language films.

This year, the Hong Kong film “Drifting”, which is based on a 2012 court case involving homeless people in the working neighborhood of Sham Shui Po, received 12 nominations including for Best Director, Best Leading Actor and Best Cinematography.

Two Taiwanese movies, titled “The Soul,” “The Falls” and “Till We Meet Again” received 11 nominations each.

“The Falls” won Best Original Screenplay, while “Drifting” won Best Adapted Screenplay.

“Revolution of Our Times,” a documentary about the Hong Kong political unrest in 2019 by Hong Kong director Kiwi Chow, won Best Documentary Feature.

The film was a controversial topic in Hong Kong and Chow was accused of flouting coronavirus rules after authorities raided a private screening of the documentary in Hong Kong. Under Hong Kong laws, private gatherings are not limited by coronavirus restrictions.

Chow has since sold the copyright of the documentary to a European distributor and disposed of all his footage, in light of risks from a sweeping national security law implemented in the city following the political unrest.

The Golden Horse Awards took place at the National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei, with Singaporean actor Mark Lee and Chinese-American actress Bai Ling presenting awards.

This year, a total of 573 entries were submitted to the Golden Horse Awards, up from 465 last year.