Bullets, Confessions lead nominations for Asian Film Awards

Let The Bullets Fly scored nominations for best film, director, actor (Chow Yun-fat), supporting actress (Carina Lau), screenplay and costume design.

Confessions, which is Japan’s selection for the foreign-language category of the Academy Awards, scooped nods for best film, director, actress (Matsu Takako), supporting actor (Okada Masaki), supporting actress (Kimura Yoshino) and editing.

Also nominated for best film are Chinese disaster movie Aftershock, India’s Peepli Live, Korea’s Poetry and Thai Cannes Palme d’Or winner Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives.

Front-runners also include Miike Takashi’s 13 Assassins and Taiwanese gangster drama Monga, which both scored five nods, and Na Hong-jin’s The Yellow Sea with four nominations. Aftershock and Peepli Live also scooped four nods.

AFAs organiser, the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, also announced that Hong Kong filmmaker Yonfan has accepted the role of jury president for this year’s AFAs.

“It is a great honour to be a part of this event that is dedicated to the promotion and development of the Asian film industry, and to celebrate the work of those working in Asian cinema,” said Yonfan.

The AFAs will also present four special awards for Lifetime Achievement, Outstanding Contribution to Asian Cinema, Promotion of Asian Cinema and 2010 Top-Grossing Film.

The awards ceremony will take place March 21 as one of the opening events of Entertainment Expo Hong Kong.

FULL LIST OF NOMINATIONS:

Best Film

AFTERSHOCK (China)

CONFESSIONS (Japan)

LET THE BULLETS FLY (China)

PEEPLI LIVE (India)

POETRY (South Korea)

UNCLE BOONMEE WHO CAN RECALL HIS PAST LIVES (Thailand)

Best Director

FENG Xiaogang – AFTERSHOCK (China)

JIANG Wen – LET THE BULLETS FLY (China)

LEE Chang-dong – POETRY (South Korea)

MIIKE Takashi – 13 ASSASSINS (Japan)

NA Hong-jin – THE YELLOW SEA (South Korea)

NAKASHIMA Tetsuya – CONFESSIONS (Japan)

Best Actor

CHOW Yun-fat – LET THE BULLETS FLY (China)

GE You – SACRIFICE (China)

HA Jung-woo – THE YELLOW SEA (South Korea)

Ethan RUAN Jin-Tian – MONGA (Taiwan)

YAKUSHO Koji – 13 ASSASSINS (Japan)

Best Actress

JEON Do-yeon – THE HOUSEMAID (South Korea)

KIKUCHI Rinko – NORWEGIAN WOOD (Japan)

MATSU Takako – CONFESSIONS (Japan)

XU Fan – AFTERSHOCK (China)

Michelle YEOH – REIGN OF ASSASSINS (China-HK-Taiwan)

Best Newcomer

Mark CHAO You-Ting – MONGA (Taiwan)

Aarif LEE – ECHOES OF RAINBOW (Hong Kong)

Omkar Das MANIKPURI – PEEPLI LIVE (India)

T.O.P. – 71: INTO THE FIRE (South Korea

ZHOU Dongyu – UNDER THE HAWTHORN TREE (China)

Best Supporting Actor          

HUANG Xiaoming – SACRIFICE (China)

Sammo HUNG Kam-po – IP MAN 2 (Hong Kong)

OKADA Masaki – CONFESSIONS (Japan)

RYU Seung-beom – THE UNJUST (South Korea)

YU Hae-jin – MOSS (South Korea)

Best Supporting Actress

AOI Yu – ABOUT HER BROTHER (Japan)

KIMURA Yoshino – CONFESSIONS (Japan)

Carina LAU Kar-ling – LET THE BULLETS FLY (China)

Shanty PAREDES – MADAME X (Indonesia)

YOON Yeo-jeong – THE HOUSEMAID (South Korea)

Best Screenplay

JIANG Wen – LET THE BULLETS FLY (China)

PANG Ho-cheung, Heiward MAK – LOVE IN A PUFF (Hong Kong)

LEE Chang-dong – POETRY (South Korea)

SU Chao-pin – REIGN OF ASSASSINS (China-HK-Taiwan)

PARK Hoon-jung – THE UNJUST (South Korea)

Best Cinematography

LEE Mogae – I SAW THE DEVIL (South Korea)

Jake POLLOCK – MONGA (Taiwan)

Mark LEE Ping-Bin – NORWEGIAN WOOD (Japan)

Hassan KYDYRALIYEV – THE LIGHT THIEF (Kyrgyzstan)

Kenny TSE Chung-to – THE STOOL PIGEON (Hong Kong)

Best Production Design

HAYASHIDA Yuji – 13 ASSASSINS (Japan)

James CHOO Sung-pong – DETECTIVE DEE & THE MYSTERY OF THE PHANTOM FLAME (Hong Kong)

Eros EFLIN – MADAME X (Indonesia)

HUANG Mei-Ching, CHEN Po-Jen – MONGA (Taiwan)

LEE Hwo-kyoung – THE YELLOW SEA (South Korea)

Best Music Score

KAZUYOSHI Saito – GOLDEN SLUMBER (Japan)

Sandee CHAN – MONGA (Taiwan)

Indian Ocean – PEEPLI LIVE (India

Peter KAM Pui-tat – REIGN OF ASSASSINS (China-HK-Taiwan)

JANG Young-gyu, LEE Byung-hoon – THE YELLOW SEA (South Korea)

Best Editing

YAMASHITA Kenji – 13 ASSASSINS (Japan)

KOIKE Yoshiyuki – CONFESSIONS (Japan)

NAM Na-young – I SAW THE DEVIL (South Korea)

Hemanti SARKAR – PEEPLI LIVE (India)

MENG Peicong – UNDER THE HAWTHORN TREE (China)

Best Visual Effects

LEE Hyuk, PARK Eui-dong, RYU Hee-jung – 71: INTO THE FIRE (South Korea)

Phil JONES – AFTERSHOCK (China)

Phil JONES – DETECTIVE DEE & THE MYSTERY OF THE PHANTOM FLAME (Hong Kong)

YAMAZAKI Takashi – SPACE BATTLESHIP YAMATO (Japan)

PARK Jung-ryul – THE MAN FROM NOWHERE (South Korea)

Best Costume Design

SAWATAISHI Kazuhiro – 13 ASSASSINS (Japan)

Bruce YU Ka-on – DETECTIVE DEE & THE MYSTERY OF THE PHANTOM FLAME (Hong Kong)

William CHANG Suk-ping – LET THE BULLETS FLY (China)

Yen-Khe LUGUERN – NORWEGIAN WOOD (Japan)

CHOI Se-yeon – THE HOUSEMAID (South Korea)