A total of 36 films produced in eight Asian regions competed for 18 prizes. Read on to find out who took home the awards
The Asian Film Awards (AFA) is a celebration of filmmakers who have cultivated the Asian film industry. This year’s edition took place on October 8 where a total of 36 films produced in eight Asian regions were nominated.
The Lee Chang-dong-led jury awarded 18 prizes in total including Best Film, Best Director and Best Newcomer. Awards that were announced before the ceremony are the Excellence in Asian Cinema, which was given to Korean actor Lee Byung-hun and the highest-grossing movie of 2020 which was awarded to the anime, Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba The Movie: Mugen Train.
Compared to previous editions where one film mostly dominated a few award categories, this year, that wasn’t entirely the case with Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Wife of a Spy, winning three awards including the top prize for Best Film. Non-East Asian films were also able to take home awards compared to previous years such as Best Screenplay for Chaitanya Tamhane for The Disciple.
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Other big winners include Yoo Ah-in’s dialogue-free performance in Voice of Silence, for which he earned another Best Actor award. After five nominations, Aoi Yu finally takes home an award—Best Actress for Wife of a Spy. Newcomer Kim Hyun-bin bagged the newcomer award for his role in Silent Forest.
Hong Kong films also received awards this year. Limbo was awarded Best Sound and Best Production Design while The Way We Keep Dancing clinched the Best Original Music award.
Read on to find out the full list of winners.
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