Veteran Hong Kong movie star Deanie Ip Tak-han was named best actress at the Venice Film Festival for her portrayal of an ageing domestic servant in Ann Hui On-wah's film A Simple Life (Tao Jie).
The award, a first for a Hongkonger, was a crowning achievement for the 63-year-old Ip, who returned to the big screen for the first time in a decade to take the film's leading role.
The movie also stars Canto-pop heartthrob Andy Lau Tak-wah.
An emotional Ip said after receiving the award: 'It's great. I haven't had my heart beat so heavily for so long, because I think it was more than 10 years ago that I had my best supporting actress award in Taipei.'
She won that Golden Horse Award for the 2000 film Crying Heart.
A Simple Life is the 10th film in which Ip and Lau have starred together. It is about the lifelong relationship between a film producer (Lau) and his housekeeper, Ah Tao (Li), who has cared for several generations of his family.