BEST ACTOR FOR NAWAZUDDIN SIDDIQUI AT 12th ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN AWARDS

Joining previous winners Rajkummar Rao & Manoj Bajpayee

FIAPF AWARD for NANDITA DAS

Nawazuddin Siddiqui was named Best Actor for his outstanding performance in Manto at the Asia Pacfic Screen Awards in Brisbane tonight. Siddiqui’s win marks the third consecutive year Indian actors have won in this category following Rajkummar Rao for Newton (2017) and Manoj Bajpayee for Aligarh (2016).

This was Siddiqui’s second APSA nomination after receiving a Special Mention in this category in 2016 for Anurag Kashyap’s Raman Raghav 2.0, only just missing out to Bajpayee. At that time APSA Jury President Lord David Puttnam said the competition was so close between the actors, the International Jury had to award a Special Mention to Siddiqui.  

In a filmed acceptance speech, Siddiqui said it was an absolute honour to be prized as the Best Actor at the prestigious APSA. “This is priceless” he said.

Manto director Nandita Das accepted the award, a unique hand-crafted glass trophy by Brisbane glass artist Joanna Bone on his behalf while composerSneha Khanwalker, in Brisbane as part of the inaugural APSA Music in Film International Jury, was also cheering him on.

Earlier in the ceremony Nandita Das had been presented with the FIAPF Award for achievement in film in the Asia Pacific region. Ms Das becomes the 12^thAsia Pacific screen icon, and second Indian to receive the award, which was also presented to Yash Chopra in 2008.

A Special Mention for Achievement in Directing went to Ivan Ayr for his direction of Soni (India), which premiered in Horizons competition at the Venice Film Festival.

In a spread of awards representing the geographical and cultural diversity of the Asia Pacific region, APSAs went to films from Australia, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Lebanon, People’s Republic of China, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Singapore and Turkey.

The Awards, hosted by New Zealand movie star Cliff Curtis and popular Australian TV presenter Sofie Formica were held at Brisbane Exhibition and Convention Centre. Winners are presented with a unique hand-crafted glass trophy created by Brisbane-based glass artist Joanna Bone.

Kore-eda Hirokazu’s Shoplifters (Manbiki Kazoku) was tonight named Best Feature Film and the Award was accepted by producer Taguchi Hijiri.

Winners in the feature fiction categories were determined by the APSA International Jury, comprised of Alexander Rodnyansky (Russian Federation), Nia Dinata (Indonesia), Deepak Rauniyar (Nepal), Vladimer Katcharava (Georgia) and Antonia Zegers (Chile).

The inaugural Best Original Score award went to the celebrated composers Hildur Guðnadóttir and the recently deceased Jóhann Jóhannsson for Mary Magdalene (Australia, UK). The winner was determined by the Music in Film International Jury comprised of Jury Chair Ryuichi Sakamoto (Japan), Sneha Khanwalkar (India) and Nigel Westlake (Australia).

Sakamoto said of the winning film “Mary Magdalene’s soundtrack is a meticulous work of art by the composers. The quality of craftsmanship and the depth of emotions are overwhelming.”

The Asia Pacific Screen Awards, the region’s highest accolade in film, honour cinematic excellence and the cultural diversity of the world’s fastest-growing film region: comprising 70 countries and areas, 4.5 billion people, and responsible for half of the world’s film output. In 2018, 46 films from 22 countries and areas of the Asia Pacific region received APSA nominations, including the first nomination for a film from Uzbekistan.

During the Ceremony, the Motion Picture Association (MPA) announced the four recipients of the 9th round of the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund, created to support, at script stage, new feature film projects originated by APSA Academy members and their colleagues across Asia Pacific. The fund awards four development grants of US$25,000 annually, and is wholly supported by the MPA. To date, 32 projects have now been funded, with many going into production and garnering success at film festivals around the world.

The four 2018 MPA APSA Film Fund recipients are:

Producer Ifa Isfansyah, directior Kamila Andini (Indonesia) for Yuni

Producer Olga Khlasheva, director Adilkhan Yerzhanov (Kazakhstan) for Hell is Empty and All The Devils Are Here

Producer Mai Meksawan, director Uruphong Raksasad (Thailand) for Worship

Director, producer, screenwriter Semih Kaplanoglu (Turkey) for Asli

 QUOTES ATTRIBUTABLE TO:

 President of the APSA International Jury, Russian producer of 2014 APSA Best Feature Film Leviathan, Alexander Rodnyansky said “We have had the great fortune to be presented with a unique line up of films that represent the different countries, cultures and talents of our region. It’s a huge and very rare opportunity to learn and understand so much about other people’s lives and I have discovered new worlds by watching them. Shoplifters turns an intimate story about an unusual family into a metaphorical social analysis that is relevant not only for Japan, but everywhere, where we are faced with a frightening panorama of a family crisis and presented with a utopian alternative in which you can choose your relatives; where closeness becomes a conscious decision (even for children), not a predetermined fate.”

Chair of APSA and its Academy Michael Hawkins said “My deepest congratulations to tonight’s winners. We are in awe of your creativity, perseverance and bravery. As Australia’s culturally-diverse New World City, we recognise the importance of connecting with our closest neighbours and of coming together to honour the creative talent of our vast region. I’m proud that Brisbane continues to shine a spotlight on powerful stories, foster cross-cultural dialogue and celebrate filmmakers whose accomplishments too often go unrecognised. The awards have brought some of the region’s most exciting filmmakers to the city alongside more than 600 film practitioners here for the World Congress of Science and Factual Producers. The Asia Pacific Screen Awards have been a driving force in transforming Brisbane into a film business hub, creating opportunity for local practitioners and strengthening the city’s significant business and cultural ties with the region.”

2018 APSA WINNERS

BEST FEATURE FILM

Shoplifters (Manbiki Kazoku) (Japan)

Kore-eda Hirokazu, Matsuzaki Kaoru, Yose Akihiko, Taguchi Hijiri

JURY GRAND PRIZE

Burning (Republic of Korea)

Lee Joon-dong, Lee Chang-dong

CULTURAL DIVERSITY AWARD UNDER THE PATRONAGE OF UNESCO

Memories of My Body (Kucumbu Tubuh Indahku) (Indonesia)

Garin Nugroho and Ifa Isfansyah

ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING

Nadine Labaki for Capharnaüm (Lebanon)

 

SPECIAL MENTION

ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING

Ivan Ayr for Soni (India)

 

BEST SCREENPLAY

Dan Kleinman, Sameh Zoabi for Tel Aviv on Fire (Israel, Belgium, France, Luxembourg)

 

ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY

Hideho Urata for A Land Imagined (Singapore, France, Netherlands)

 

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR

Nawazuddin Siddiqui for Manto (India)

 

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS

Zhao Tao for Ash is Purest White (Jiang hu er nv) (People’s Republic of China, France)

 

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Hildur Guðnadóttir, Jóhann Jóhannsson for Mary Magdalene (Australia, UK)

 

BEST YOUTH FEATURE FILM

The Pigeon (Güvercin)

Banu Savıcı, Mesut Ulutaş
(Turkey)

 

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

Rezo (Znaesh’ mama, gde ya byl)
(Russian Federation)

Leo Gabriadze, Timur Bekmambetov

 

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM

Gurrumul
 (Australia)

Paul Damien Williams, Shannon Swan

 

YOUNG CINEMA AWARD

Yeo Siew Hua for A Land Imagined
(Singapore, France, Netherlands)

 

FIAPF Award for achievement in film in the Asia Pacific region

Nandita Das
(India)

 

APSA ACADEMY AWARDS

 

MPA APSA Academy Film Fund recipients

Producer Ifa Isfansyah, director Kamila Andini (Indonesia) for Yuni

Producer Olga Khlasheva, director Adilkhan Yerzhanov (Kazakhstan) for Hell is Empty and All The Devils Are Here

Producer Mai Meksawan, director Uruphong Raksasad (Thailand) for Worship

Director, producer, screenwriter Semih Kaplanoglu (Turkey) for Asli

 

APSA Academy Bo Ai Film Fund recipient

Director Feras Fayyad (Syria) for feature documentary The Cave

 

Asia Pacific Screen Lab Recipients

Sherwan Haki (Syria)

Taro Imai (Japan)

Khanjan Koshore Nath (India)