The 58th Golden Horse Awards ceremony is taking place at National Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei today, with Singaporean comedian Mark Lee (李國煌) and Chinese-American actress Bai Ling (白靈) presenting awards.
Known for his wit and colorful antics, Lee was nominated for best leading actor for the comedy drama Number 1 (男兒王) at the awards last year, while Bai was also nominated last year as best leading actress for the drama The Abortionist (墮胎師).
The annual Golden Horse Awards, established in 1962, is considered one of the most prestigious film awards in the Chinese-language world.
A total of 573 entries were submitted to this year’s awards, up from last year’s 465, with a new category — best documentary short film — added this year.
Hong Kong film Drifting (濁水漂流), based on a real-life incident that involved homeless people in the territory, received the most nominations — 12 — this year.
Three other films — The Soul (緝魂), The Falls (瀑布) and Till We Meet Again (月老), all made in Taiwan, received 11 nominations each.
In other news, English-language video streaming service Taiwan+ is showcasing Taiwan’s classic cinematic stories through its online “Taiwan+ Film Festival 2021,” which runs until the end of the year.
Taiwan+ is holding the film festival, featuring a selection of 10 movies including Golden Horse Film Festival awardees, to increase international awareness about Taiwan, its chief executive officer Joanne Tsai (蔡秋安) said.
Awareness can be promoted because it links to the upcoming Golden Horse Awards, she added.
The 10 films were uploaded on Taiwan+’s Web site on Nov. 15 and most are free to watch around the world until Dec. 31.
Among them is award-winning director Ang Lee’s (李安) Father Knows Best Trilogy (父親三部曲), which features family tension and tender comedic moments — Pushing Hands (推手, 1991), Eat Drink Man Woman (飲食男女, 1994), and The Wedding Banquet (囍宴, 1993).
However, the three movies will not be available to viewers in the US, Canada, Mexico, Germany and France, Taiwan+ said.
The other seven films include some Taiwanese classics, three of which are restored films. They include two cult favorite black-and-white movies from the Taiwan Hollywood era of the 1960s, The Fantasy of Deer Warrior (大俠梅花鹿, 1961) and Vengeance of the Phoenix Sisters (三鳳震武林, 1968).
The third restored film is Wheel of Life (大輪迴, 1983), the stories of three souls that continually metamorphose into different characters while continuing their twisted romance.
Taiwan needs more attention on the global stage and Taiwan+ aims to help achieve that, Tsai said, adding that the “+” in the platform’s name is about linking Taiwan with fields such as movies and music.
Taiwan+ was launched on Aug. 30 as the nation’s first English-language video news and programming platform aimed at an international audience.
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