Inaugural Asian Film Awards’ Korean Selections

The first edition of the Asian Film Awards (AFA) features Korean nominees in all categories. The Korean inclusions for the most prestigious prizes: The Host vies for the Best Film award, HONG Sang-soo is included in the Best Director short-list for Woman on the Beach, JUNG Ji-hoon (I’m a Cyborg, but that’s OK) and SONG Kang-ho (The Host) compete for the Best Actor prize, and KIM Hye-soo (Tazza: The High Rollers) and LIM Soo-jung (I’m a Cyborg, but that’s OK) are contenders in the Best Actress category.

The AFA is different from other Asian film awards, as its selection process neglects nationality or ethnicity among Asian countries. The inauguration will be held at the 31^st Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF). The award show is scheduled for March 20. The nominees are from films of 2006 and there are ten categories. The Korean Film Council’s chairperson AN Cheong-sook is part of the seventeen member jury.

The HKIFF believes that "a celebration of the Asian cinema is long overdue" and announced that it wants to develop the AFA into a prestigious event, "We aim to make the AFA the most prominent and definitive film awards for the region by highlighting excellence in Asian filmmaking and by bringing broader attention to the rich and diverse stories and storytellers from all over Asia today."

Yi Ch’ang-ho (KOFIC)

Complete AFA 2007 list of categories and its nominees:

Best Film

Curse Of The Golden Flower (Hong Kong /China)

Exiled (Hong Kong)

The Host (South Korea)

Love And Honor (Japan)

Opera Jawa (Indonesia /Austria)

Still Life (China)

Best Director

HONG Sangsoo - Woman On The Beach (South Korea)

JIA Zhangke - Still Life (China)

Jafar PANAHI - Offside (Iran)

Johnnie TO - Exiled (Hong Kong)

TSAI Ming-liang - I Don't Want To Sleep Alone (Taiwan-France-Austria)

Apichatpong WEERASETHAKUL - Syndromes And A Century (Thailand-Austria-France)

Best Actor

CHANG Chen - The Go Master (China)

JUNG Ji-hoon - I'm a Cyborg, but that's OK (South Korea)

Shahrukh KHAN - Don (India)

Andy LAU - A Battle Of Wits (Japan-Hong Kong-China-South Korea)

SONG Kang-ho - The Host (South Korea)

Ken WATANABE - Memories Of Tomorrow(Japan)

Best Actress

GONG Li - Curse Of The Golden Flower (Hong Kong-China)

KIM Hye-soo - Tazza: The High Rollers (South Korea)

LIM Soo-jung - I'm A Cyborg, but that's OK (South Korea)

MIYAZAWA Rie - Hana (Japan)

NAKATANI Miki - Memories Of Matsuko (Japan)

ZHANG Ziyi - The Banquet (Hong Kong-China)

Best Screenwriter

Mani HAGHIGHI - Men At Work (Iran)

HONG Sangsoo - Woman On The Beach (South Korea)

OISHI Tetsuya, KANEKO Shusuke - Death Note: The Last Name (Japan)

SOHN Jae-gon - My Scary Girl (South Korea)

Prabda YOON - Invisible Waves (Thailand-Netherlands-South Korea-Hong Kong)

ZHANG Cheng, YUE Xiaojun, NING Hao - Crazy Stone (Hong Kong-China)

Best Cinematographer

KIM Hyung-goo - The Host (South Korea)

Andrew LAU, LAI Yiu-fai - Confession Of Pain (Hong Kong)

LIAO Pen-jung - I Don't Want to Sleep Alone (Taiwan-France-Austria)

Sayombhu MUKDEEPROM - Syndromes And A Century (Thailand-Austria-France)

WANG Yu - The Go Master (China)

Best Production Designer

CHO Keun-hyun - Forbidden Quest (South Korea)

KUWAJIMA Towako - Memories Of Matsuko (Japan)

Patrick TAM, Cyrus HO - After This Our Exile (Hong Kong)

WADA Emi - The Go Master (China)

Tim YIP - The Banquet(Hong Kong-China)

Best Composer

JEONG Yong-jin - Woman On The Beach (South Korea)

Peter KAM - Isabella (Hong Kong)

LIM Giong - Still Life (China)

Rahayu SUPANGGAH - Opera Jawa (Indonesia-Austria)

TERASHIMA Tamiya - Tales From Earthsea (Japan)

Best Editor

Lee CHATAMETIKOOL - Syndromes And A Century (Thailand-Austria-France)

KIM Sun-min - The Host (South Korea)

Angie LAM - Dog Bite Dog (Japan-Hong Kong)

PARK Gok-ji, JEONG Jin-hee - A Dirty Carnival (South Korea)

Patrick TAM - After This Our Exile (Hong Kong)

Best Visual Effects

Angela BARSON, CHUNG Chi-hang - Curse Of The Golden Flower (Hong Kong-China)

Digital Tetra Inc - The Restless (South Korea)

OHYA Tetsuo - The Sinking Of Japan (Japan)

The Orphanage - The Host (South Korea)

YANAGAWASE Masahide - Memories Of Matsuko (Japan)