“Cemetery of Splendor” Wins Top Prize – Best Feature Film at Asia Pacific Screen Awards

Cemetery of Splendour from Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul won the 2015 Asia Pacific Screen Award (APSA) for Best Feature Film, considered the region’s highest accolade in film. Cemetery of Splendour is set in and around a hospital ward full of comatose soldiers. Attached to glowing dream machines, and tended to by a kindly volunteer (Jenjira Pongpas Widner) and a young clairvoyant (Jarinpattra Rueangram), the men are said to be waging war in their sleep on behalf of long-dead feuding kings, and their mysterious slumber provides the rich central metaphor: sleep as safe haven, as escape mechanism, as ignorance, as bliss.

The APSA UNESCO Award for outstanding contribution to the promotion and preservation of cultural diversity through film was awarded to Palestinian director Hany Abu-Assad for The Idol.  The Idol is inspired by the true story of 2013 Arab Idol winner Mohammed Assaf, whose rise to fame both gave hope to and united a people. Assaf has gone on to become the first Regional Youth Ambassador for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency in the six decades of the organization’s history.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zn4wbJcr96M

The APSA for Achievement in Directing went to Russian director Alexey German Jr for Under Electric Clouds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqSsHILSGZQ

Best Performance by an Actor went to Korean superstar Jung Jaeyoung for his role in Right Now, Wrong Then by Korean filmmaker Hong Sang-soo, and Best Performance by an Actress was awarded to Kirin Kiki, one of the most influential actresses in Japan, for An (Japan, France, Germany). Kiki is the first Japanese actress to win APSA Best Performance by the Actress in the nine-year history of the event.

Best Documentary Feature Film winner is The Chinese Mayor (Datong, People’s Republic of China), produced by Zhao Qi. The jury called the film ‘A powerful and provocative representation of a country going through radical change at a rapid pace, with a multi-faceted but even-handed portrayal of cultural, economic and political forces.’

Winner of the APSA for Best Animated Feature Film is Miss Hokusai (Sarusuberi: Miss Hokusai, Japan), produced by Keiko Matsushita and Asako Nishikawa. The Jury said ‘Miss Hokusai is a magical marriage of the divergent media of Japanese painting and film animation, blending the special qualities of both disciplines with poetic beauty and evocative storytelling.’

APSA 2015 – full list of WINNERS

BEST FEATURE FILM
Cemetery of Splendour (Rak ti Khon Kaen)
Thailand, Malaysia, France, Germany, United Kingdom

BEST YOUTH FEATURE FILM
River (Gtsngbo)
People’s Republic of China

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Miss Hokusai (Sarusuberi: Miss Hokusai)
Japan

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
The Chinese Mayor (Datong)
People’s Republic of China

ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING
Alexey German Jr for Under Electric Clouds (Pod elektricheskimi oblakami)
Russian Federation, Ukraine, Poland

BEST SCREENPLAY
Senem Tüzen for Motherland (Ana Yurdu)
Turkey, Greece

ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY
Mark Lee Ping-bing for The Assassin (Nie Yinniang)
Taiwan

SPECIAL MENTION: ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY
Lu Songye for Tharlo
People’s Republic of China

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS
Kirin Kiki in An
Japan, France, Germany

SPECIAL MENTION: BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS
Fatemeh Motamed Arya in Avalanche (Bahman)
Islamic Republic of Iran

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR
Jung Jaeyoung in Right Now, Wrong Then (Jigeumeun Matgo Geuttaeneun Teullida)
Republic of Korea

APSA UNESCO AWARD
Hany Abu-Assad for The Idol (Ya Tayr El Tayer)
Palestine, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Netherlands

SPECIAL MENTION: APSA UNESCO AWARD
Stephen Page for Spear
Australia

FIAPF AWARD for Outstanding Achievement in Film in the Asia Pacific region
Esaad Younis (Egypt)

APSA ACADEMY NETPAC DEVELOPMENT PRIZE
Mirlan Abdykalykov for Heavenly Nomadic (Sutak)
Kyrgyzstan

JURY GRAND PRIZE
Park Jungbum for writing/directing/acting in Alive (Sanda),
Republic of Korea

JURY GRAND PRIZE
Emin Alper for writing and directing Frenzy (Abluka)
Turkey, Qatar, France