Michael Hui is nominated for best actor in the 2017 Asian Film Awards for his part in Godspeed (above).

Derek Tsang, Michael Hui and Kara Wai fly flag for Hong Kong in Asian Film Awards; city misses out on best picture nod again

Hong Kong actors and filmmakers have a chance of winning all the major prizes except the biggest one as the Asian Film Awards ceremony returns to the city

Edmund Lee

Published: 5:20pm, 11 Jan 2017

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No Hong Kong films are up for the best picture prize in the Asian Film Awards for the third year in a row.

The five nominees for best film are supernatural horror-thriller The Wailing (South Korea); sprawling espionage drama The Age of Shadows (South Korea); the family drama/suspense thriller Harmonium, the Jury Prize winner in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2016 Cannes film festival; the darkly comic Taiwanese road movie Godspeed ; and Chinese director Feng Xiaogang’s social satire I Am Not Madame Bovary .

A still from Soul Mate, Hong Kong filmmaker Derek Tsang’s solo directorial debut, for which he is nominated for the best director prize in the Asian Film Awards

The last Hong Kong film to be nominated for best picture in the awards was Wong Kar-wai’s martial arts drama The Grandmaster, which went on to win the prize at the 2014 ceremony.

Hong Kong is better represented in other major categories, with Derek Tsang nominated for best director for his solo directorial debut Soul Mate , Michael Hui (Godspeed) and Richie Jen ( Trivisa ) for best actor, Kara Wai ( Happiness ) for best actress, Lam Suet (Trivisa) for best supporting actor, and Elaine Jin (Mad World) and Lynn Xiong ( See You Tomorrow ) for best supporting actress.

Richie Jen (left) and Lam Suet, respectively nominated for the best actor and best supporting actor prizes in the Asian Film Awards, in a scene from Trivisa.

Having been hosted by Macau for the past few years, the awards – which are supported financially by Create Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Film Development Fund – are belatedly returning to Hong Kong, the city in which they were first held, with the awards ceremony taking place at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre on March 21. Celebrated Chinese director Jia Zhangke will serve as this year’s jury president.

The full list of nominations is as follows:

Best film

The Wailing , The Age of Shadows, Harmonium, Godspeed, I Am Not Madame Bovary

Best director

Na Hong-jin (The Wailing), Koji Fukada (Harmonium), Derek Tsang (Soul Mate), Feng Xiaogang (I Am Not Madame Bovary), Lav Diaz (The Woman Who Left)

A scene from best picture nominee Harmonium.

Best actor

Michael Hui (Godspeed), Gong Yoo (Train to Busan), Tadanobu Asano (Harmonium), Fan Wei (Mr. No Problem), Richie Jen (Trivisa)

Best actress

Son Ye-jin (The Last Princess), Fan Bingbing (I Am Not Madame Bovary), Haru Kuroki (A Bride for Rip Van Winkle), Kara Wai (Happiness), Charo Santos-Concio (The Woman Who Left)

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Best supporting actor

Jun Kunimura (The Wailing), Ma Dong-seok (Train to Busan), Go Ayano (Rage), Dong Chengpeng (I Am Not Madame Bovary), Lam Suet (Trivisa)

Best supporting actress

Elaine Jin (Mad World), Moon So-ri (The Handmaiden), Atsuko Maeda (The Mohican Comes Home), Shabana Azmi (Neerja), Lynn Xiong (See You Tomorrow)

Best newcomer

Kim Tae-ri (The Handmaiden), Takara Sakumoto (Rage), Firdaus Rahman (Apprentice), Wu Tsz-tung (Weeds on Fire), Lin Yun (The Mermaid)

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Best screenplay

The Salesman, The Woman Who Left, Your Name, The Handmaiden, Trivisa

Best editing

The Handmaiden, Rage, Train to Busan, Apprentice, Operation Mekong

Fan Bingbing in Feng Xiaogang’s I Am Not Madame Bovary.

Best cinematography

After the Storm, The Age of Shadows, I Am Not Madame Bovary, Mr. No Problem, The Wasted Times

Best original music

Soul Mate, The Age of Shadows, Three, Godspeed, Rage

Best costume design

The Wasted Times, The Handmaiden, The Sanada Ten Braves, Train to Busan, See You Tomorrow

Best production design

The Handmaiden, Pandora, A Bride for Rip Van Winkle, See You Tomorrow, Railroad Tigers

Best visual effects

Train to Busan, Shin Godzilla, Railroad Tigers, See You Tomorrow

Best sound

The Wailing, Crosscurrent, Shin Godzilla, Cold War 2

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