Derek Yee’s I Am Somebody will open this year’s Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF, June 13-21), while China-Russian co-production Ballet In The Flames Of War will close the event.

Directed by China’s Yachun Dong and Russia’s Nikita Mikhalkov, Ballet In The Flames Of War is a romance set during the Second World War and opened the Chinese Film Festival in Mosow last month.

Meanwhile, Mikhalkov’s Sunstroke is one of nine films selected for the Golden Goblet Awards, along with Daniel Barnz’s Cake and Taiwanese director Tung Wang’s Where The Wind Settles (see list below). Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev (Leviathan) heads the jury for the awards.

Films nominated for the Asian New Talent Award include Japanese director Momoko Ando’s 0.5mm, Iranian filmmaker Hooman Seyedi’s 13 and Labour Of Love from India’s Aditya Vikram Sengupta.

Zhang Yimou’s Coming Home is also nominated in this section, but for the performance of actress Zhang Huiwen rather than the director himself. In previous years, the nominated films have all been from first and second-time directors.

The festival’s SIFForum seminar programme will include sessions on industry structure, film financing, internet business models and co-production, along with nurturing new directing and screenwriting talent.  

The festival will also host two special events – the Internet Film Carnival and Jackie Chan Action Movie Week.

Stars expected on the red carpet on opening night include Gong Li, Zhang Ziyi, Fan Bingbing, Jackie Chan, Aaron Kwok and Leon Lai.

18TH SHANGHAI INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL:

Golden Goblet Awards Nominations:

Cake– dir, Daniel Barnz (USA)

Carte Blanche – dir, Jacek Lusiński (Poland)

The Duchess Of Warsaw – dir, Joseph Morder (France)

Jamaeh Daran – dir, Hamid Ghotbe (Iran)

The Midwife – dir, Antti Jokinen (Finland/Lithuania)

The Night Watchman – dir, Pierre Jolivet (France/Belgium) 

Salut D’Amour – dir, Kang Je-kyu (Korea) 

Sunstroke – dir, Nikita Mikhalkov (Russia)

Where The Wind Settles – dir, Tung Wang (Taiwan, China)

Asian New Talent Award Nominations:

0.5mm– dir, Momoko Ando (Japan)

13– dir, Hooman Seyedi (Iran)

A Fresh Start – dir, JANG Woojin (Korea)

Bon Lin– dir, Keiichi Kobayashi (Japan)

Coming Home – dir, ZHANG Yimou (China)

End Of Winter – dir, Dae-hwan Kim (Korea)

Labour Of Love – dir, Aditya Vikram Sengupta (India)

Nezha– dir, LI Xiaofeng (China)

North By Northeast – dir, ZHANG Bingjian (Chian)

River– dir, Song Taijia (China)

Seeing– dir, Chakme Rinpoche (China)

Sex Appeal – dir, Wei-Ming Wang (Taiwan, China)

Siti– dir, Eddie Cahyono (Indonesia)

Wolf Warrior – dir, WU Jing (China)

Young Love, Lost – dir, XIANG Guoqiang (China)

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