Asian American Press, Nov. 25, 2005
Golden Horse Awards 2005

The 27th Golden Horse Awards Competition was held on Nov. 13 in Keelung,
Taiwan. It came as no surprise that “Kung Fu Hustle,” China's
highest-grossing film of 2004, and a leader in worldwide video sales
would take several of the top honors. Kung Fu Hustle won for Best
Picture, Director (Stephen Chow), Supporting Actress (Yuen Qiu), Visual
Effects, and Make Up & Costume Design.

[image] Stephen Chow in Minneapolis
At just age 42, Stephen Chow (Chow Sing Chi) is Hong Kong’s most
successful producer/director/writer/actor, with each new project
surpassing his previous string of critically acclaimed box office
blockbusters.

[image]
Yuen Qiu last appeared in a film 30 years ago, and with much urging from
Stephen Chow, she reluctantly agreed to take the role as the Pigsty
Landlady in Kung Ful Hustle, even temporarily gaining 30 pounds in two
months for the part. The onetime stuntwoman and actress appeared in
Jackie Chang movies and immortalized in the James Bond film “The Man
with the Golden Gun”.

[image]
Asian American filmmaker Alice Wu became a rare Yankee import to receive
a nomination for “Saving Face.” The Audience Award went to “Saving
Face,” the first film from director Alice Wu. Although the film’s star,
Michelle Krusiec, did not win for Best Leading Actress, which went to
Shu Qi for “Three Times,” which was also named Taiwanese Film of the Year.

[image]
Saving Face, now out on video, pits a young New York surgeon (Krusiec)
and her mom (Joan Chen) against their own family over issues of a
pregnancy, a female lover, and the two explore their relationship when
they are forced to live together.

[image]
The unorthodox action thriller, “Divergence,” won for Best Leading Actor
(Aaron Kwok), Cinematography, and Editing.

Taiwan Actor’s Union founder, Ge Heung-ting was presented with a
Lifetime Achievement Award.

Hou Hsiao Hsien was named the Taiwanese Filmmaker of the Year.

The 6th Digital Shorts Competition Awards were given out the night
before the Golden Horse.

The Grand prix award went to ”Fallen Art¨ by Tomek Baginski.

The Best Taiwan Film “was Cubic Tragedy,¨ by Ming-Yuan Chuan.

The Special Jury Award went to “Wings,” by Pai-hsin Kuo.

The Best Documentary went to “Two Hands,” by Fabio Wuytack.

The Best Animation award went to “Imago,¨ by Cedric Babouche.

The Best Experimental award went to “Viscera,¨ by Leighton Pierce.

The Best Fiction award went to “Fluent Dysphasia,” by Daniel O’Hara

Tge Chunghwa Telecom MOD Audience’s Choice Award went to “Fermentation,”
by Liao Ming Yi.

Hosted by The Motion Picture Development Foundation R.O.C. Government
Information Office, The Golden Horse Awards competition was founded in
1962 to promote Taiwanese films. The international program joined in
1980, and since then the whole festival has become the most influential
film awards in Asia.

Golden Horse Awards 2005
(•Winner)

Best Picture
•Kung Fu Hustle
Election
Three Times
The Wayward Cloud
A World Without Thieves

Best Director
• Stephen Chow (Kung Fu Hustle)
Tsai Ming Liang (The Wayward Cloud)
Johnnie To (Election)
Hou Hsiao Hsien (Three Times)

Best Leading Actor
• Aaron Kwok (Divergence)
Tony Leung Ka Fai (Election)
Chang Chen (Three Times)
Chen Khen (A West Lake Moment)

Best Leading Actress
• Shu Qi (Three Times)
Miriam Yeung (Drink Drank Drunk)
Chen Shiang Chyi (The Wayward Cloud)
Michelle Krusiec (Saring Face)

Best Supporting Actor
• Anthony Wong (Initial D)
Alex Fong (Drink Drank Drunk)
Wong Tin Lam (Election)
Yuen Wah (Kung Fu Hustle)

Best Supporting Actress
• Yuen Qiu (Kung Fu Hustle)
Teresa Mo (2 Young)
Hsiao Shu Shen (Love's Lone Flower)
Liu Yi Jing (Blue Cha-Cha)

Best New Performer
• Jay Chou (Initial D)
Isabella Leong (Bug Me Not!)
Race Wong (Ab-normal Beauty)
¢Ûegan ¢Úai (How's Life?)

Best Original Screenplay
• Yau Nai Hoi, Yip Tin Shing (Election)
Chu Tien Wen, Hou Hsiao Hsien (Three Times)
Yim Ho, Zheng Xiao (A West Lake Moment)
Pang Ho Cheung, Wong Wing Sze (Beyond Our Ken)

Best Screeenplay Adaptation
• Feng Xiaogang, Wang Gang, Lin Lisheng (A World Without Thieves)
Felix Chong (Initial D)
Tsui Hark, Cheung Chi Sing, Chun Tin Nam (Seven Swords)

Best Documentary
• Jump! Boys
Taiwan Black Movies

Best Animation
• The Fire Ball
DragonBlade
Ven. Yin Shun

Best Cinematography
• Anthony Pun (Divergence)
Cheng Siu Keung (Election)
Kwok-Man Keung, Venus Keung (Seven Swords)
Mark Lee Ping Bin (Three Times)

Best Editing
• Yau Chu Wai (Divergence)
Liu Miaomiao (A World Without Thieves)
Liao Ching Song, Hsiao Ru Kuan (Three Times)
Angie Lam (Kung Fu Hustle)

Best Original Film Score
• Cin Cin Lee (Blue Cha-Cha)
Jeffrey Cheng (The Heirloom)
Lo Tayu (Election)
Anthony Chue (Divergence)

Best Original Film Song
• "Sunlight" - Lyrics, Music, Performer: James Ho (Jump! Boys)
"Drifting" - Lyrics: Fang Wen Shan; Music, Performer: Jay Chou (Initial D)
"Song for Heaven" - Lyrics: Lin Xi; Music: Lo Tayu; Performer: Silver
(Election)
"[?]" - Lyrics, Music, Performer: Luantan Ascent (Falling in Love)

Best Visual Effects
• Frankie Chung, Don Ma, Tam Kai Kwan, Franco Hung (Kung Fu Hustle)
Victor Wong, Eddy Wong, Bryan Cheung (Initial D)
Peter Webb (Seven Swords)
Yang Harn Chang, Lin Chih Chao (The Shoe Fairy)

Best Art Direction
• Wong Yi Fei (The Shoe Fairy)
Eddy Wong (Seven Swords)
Hwarng Wern Ying, Wang Chih Cheng (Three Times)
Oliver Wong (Kung Fu Hustle)

Best Make Up & Costume Design
• Shirley Chan (Kung Fu Hustle)
Stanley Cheung (Election)
Poon Wing Yan, Shirley Chan (Seven Swords)
Hwarng Wern Ying, Liao Su Jen, Ms. Gin Oy, Wang Kuan Yi (Three Times)

Best Action Choreography
• Lau Kar Leung, Tung Wai, Xiong Xin Xin (Seven Swords)
Kong Taohoi (A World Without Thieves)
Wong Chi Wai (Election)
Yuen Wo Ping (Kung Fu Hustle)

Best Sound Effects
• May Mok, Charlie Lo (Election)
Kinson Tsang (Initial D)
Steve Burgess (Seven Swords)
Steven Ticknor, Steve Burgess, Rob Mackenzie, Paul Pirola (Kung Fu Hustle)

Best Short Film
• Eros - The Hand
How's Life?
The Pain of Others

http://www.aapress.com/archive/2005/webnov25/a-goldhorse.htm

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xinhua
HK blockbusters dominate Golden Horse Awards
www.chinaview.cn 2005-11-15 08:28:54

BEIJING, Nov. 15 -- Hong Kong blockbusters swept the major prizes of Taiwan's 42nd Golden Horse Film Awards, considered one of the top awards events of the Chinese-language film industry.

[image] Veteran actress Hsu Chi was named best actress at Taiwan's Golden Horse awards for her performance in "Three Times," a sensual examination of three love affairs in three different eras. Hsu plays a pool hall hostess, a retrained courtesan and a hedonistic rock singer.
Stephen Chow ("Kung Fu Hustle") was the big winner, with best picture and best director awards, his first Golden Horses. But he was not present to claim his prizes.

Set in 1930s Shanghai, Chow's trademark slapstick comedy has broken through to overseas distribution, particularly the United States.

In what may have been the biggest surprise of this year's Golden Horse awards, Aaron Kwok ("Divergence") edged out fellow Hong Konger Tony Leung for best actor.

Kwok said he had not starred in many movies and the award marked "another beginning" for his career.

Also vying with Leung in the best actor category were Taiwan's Chang Chen ("Three Times"), and Chen Kun ("A West Lake Moment").

Taiwanese screen siren Hsu Chi, five-time Golden Horse nominee, walked away with the best actress award for her role in the three-segment romance "Three Times."

Hsu's rivals were Chen Shiang-chyi ("The Wayward Cloud"), Miriam Yeung ("Drink, Drank, Drunk") and Michelle Krusiec ("Saving Face").

Taiwanese pop sensation Jay Chou, a singer-songwriter and one of the Chinese-language music industry's biggest names, won for best new performer with "Initial D," signaling the appearance of a new Asian film presence.

"I'm not very confident about acting, unlike my music," Chou said in his acceptance speech. "But after winning this award, getting this recognition, I'm very happy."

Six out of 10 film critics surveyed by the Taipei-based Ming Sheng Daily had favored Leung to take home one of the 18 Golden Horses for his role in "Election," the story of a bloody power struggle in a Hong Kong gang society.

Critics had expected Chow to win for best director following his sweep of the Hong Kong Film Awards earlier this year for "Kung Fu Hustle," the most commercially successful movie in the competition.

An array of stars paraded along the blue carpet at the cultural center in northern Keelung city, where police tightened security after the first death threat in the history of the Golden Horse awards.

A man who demanded five million Taiwan dollars (US$148,809) from event organizers was arrested earlier in the week.

"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" director Ang Lee and heart-throb actor Takeshi Kaneshiro attended the gala but Hong Kong superstar Jackie Chan and Andy Lau, injured on location in Beijing, were not in the VIP crowd.

Hong Kong blockbusters eclipsed Taiwanese art house films at this year's event, with Hong Kong director Johnnie To's "Election" up for 11 Golden Horses including best director and best picture, and "Kung Fu Hustle" nominated in 10 categories.

Legendary Taiwanese auteur Hou Hsiao-hsien's "Three Times" lost to Chow despite nine nominations.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-11/15/content_3781541.htm

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Taipei Times, Nov 14, 2005
Golden Horse Film Festival still running strong after 15 years

The Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival ensures that the star-studded Golden Horse Awards doesn't entirely hog the spotlight of film lovers by providing a lineup over 200

feature and short films. It also brings over world-class film making professionals, such as director Suzuki Seijun and the Dardenne brothers.

Behind such an accomplishment stands a long-haired, petite woman named Christine Tsui-Hua Huang (黃翠華).

Fifteen years ago, she was appointed program director for the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival and for three years built up the film gala when the local film festival industry was still in its infancy.

Returning now, with a wealth of experience under her belt, Huang has grander aspirations. Having majored in English literature at university, she holds a rather poetic view of cinema as an art form.

"To me, film, or art in general, is the medium through which I can gain an understanding of myself and the world," Huang said.

She believes a film festival is a communicative medium. Primarily a visual art form, cinema makes a direct impact on the audience and delivers powerful messages, while offering individualistic perspectives about the world.

"As an island country, Taiwan needs to expand its understanding of the world. It is important for us to be introspective as well as understanding other cultures and peoples."

This goal is realized in the "Global Vision" section of the festival, in which over 35 independent films from Asia, Europe, Africa and South and North America present different stories from around the globe.

Another key concern for festival curators is diversity, Huang said. A healthy environment for cinema is one which embraces all possibilities, in terms of content and form.

"Taiwan's movie market is too small and is dominated by the mainstream," she said. "As a festival supported by the government, we must use tax payers' money well, that is, to supplement the lack of alternatives in the market."

This is why the bulk of screenings go to independent films, while the new section, "The Digital (R)evolution," preserves the festival's experimental spirit.

Democratization is also a concept Huang bears in mind when she sets the festival's agenda. Each individual's right to see the films he or she likes is ensured through Huang's insistence on diversity.

"I hope the festival can satisfy audience members of all tastes and preferences. It should also be a showcase for filmmakers with different aesthetic interests and expressions." Huang said.

Although coming across as an idealist, Huang is pragmatic. As a producer for her ex-husband Hung Hung's (鴻鴻) three movies Love of Three Oranges (三橘之戀), Human Comedy (人間喜劇) and A Garden in the Sky (空中花園), she gained not only valuable experience of local independent film making but also an insider's view of the industry's weaknesses.

"In Taiwan we are not short of good ideas and young talent. Production and stardom are the two major weak points of the local industry."

To address these problems the festival includes two special programs this year: A collection of works by European producer Paolo Branco, who specializes in fund-raising and international co-operation for independent cinema. The other program introduces the films of Japanese actor Asano Tadanobu, who is respected as an independent and mainstream actor.

"When I curate the programs, I think of how the festival can be of help to the industry. By bringing in foreign experience and examples, local film professionals and industry experts may benefit from the model of success set by others."

When asked how the cinematic environment had changed over the years, Huang said that a decade ago the Golden Horse had no competitors to vie for resources.

But now, the dominant position of the Golden Horse Film Festival has been eroded. Small- to medium-size film festivals have mushroomed and cater to audiences of different interests. The era of democracy for film festivals has begun, while new problems gradually emerge along the way.

"Now we face a new set of problems, such as the unbalanced distribution of resources, or festivals with similar orientations that overlap and therefore compete for limited resources," Huang said, setting out some of the issues for the next stage of growth in local film festivals.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2005/11/14/2003280172

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reuters, Nov 13, 2005
"Kung Fu Hustle" wins at Chinese Oscars
By Alice Hung

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Martial arts comedy "Kung Fu Hustle" won the best film title at the Chinese-language version of the Oscars on Sunday, becoming the biggest winner at the Golden Horse ceremony in Taiwan.

Taiwan has played host to the Golden Horse awards, which showcase Chinese-language films, for 42 years, but contestants from Hong Kong and China have stolen the spotlight in recent years as Taiwan's renowned art films lost their appeal.

A raucous tale set in 1930s China about a hapless gangster's attempt to prove himself deadly, "Kung Fu Hustle" bagged five awards, including best director for Hong Kong's superstar actor-turned-director Stephen Chow. It was nominated in 10 categories.

The U.S-financed hit earned six Hong Kong Film Awards -- including best picture -- earlier this year, set a box office record in Hong Kong for a Chinese-language film and racked up millions of dollars at overseas box offices.

But "Election", which was this year's most nominated film, won just two awards -- best original screenplay and best sound effects. The Hong Kong gangster tale was directed by last year's Golden Horse best director Johnnie To.

Underscoring a decline in the island's once-thriving movie industry, Taiwan movies failed to win major awards.

Critics say Taiwan's slow-moving art films -- once loved at international film festivals -- have lost support at home as viewers find them difficult to understand and opt instead for action.

Actress Shu Qi took one of top prizes for Taiwan for her leading role in "Three Times", featuring three stories set in three different times but using the same actors by arthouse director Hou Hsiao-hsien.

"I hope we can do better with the Chinese-language films in the Chinese-speaking world, including Hong Kong, Taiwan and the mainland, so that foreign films will not take over the entire market," said Hou, who received a special mention as the best filmmaker in Taiwan.

The title of best actor went to Hong Kong pop singer and first time Golden Horse nominee Aaron Kwok for his role in "Divergence".

"For me, winning this award means a new beginning," Kwok said in the northern city of Keelung, where the glittering ceremony was held this year.

Best supporting actress went to Yuen Qiu for her role in "Kung Fu Hustle", while Anthony Wong bagged the best supporting actor for his role in "Initial D". Both were from Hong Kong.

Taiwan pop star Jay Chou was awarded best new performer for starring in "Initial D", his first movie.

http://today.reuters.com/News/newsArticle.aspx?type=entertainmentNews&storyID=2005-11-13T163527Z_01_MOL359623_RTRUKOC_0_US-LEISURE-TAIWAN-FILM.xml

 

 

__________________

with kind regards,

Matthias Arnold
(Art-Eastasia list)

http://www.chinaresource.org
http://www.fluktor.de

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