AUSTRALIA’S MEMOIR OF A SNAIL, MAGIC BEACH NOMINATED AT 17th ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN AWARDS

The Asia Pacific Screen Academy has announced the nominees in the 17th Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) with Australian films Magic Beach (pictured, below) and Memoir of a Snail among 31 films from 23 Asia Pacific countries and areas represented in the 2024 nominations roster. 

Leading the field for the 17th annual event, with nominations in five categories, are two powerful, cinematic stories by and about women. Payal Kapadia’s All We Imagine as Light (France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg), described as an ode to nocturnal Mumbai, and Dea Kulumbegashvili’s April (Georgia, Italy, France), the story of an ob-gyn, are both nominated for Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography and Best Performance. 

SEE THE FULL LIST OF 2024 APSA NOMINATED FILMS HERE

“Congratulations to all the nominees in the 17th Asia Pacific Screen Awards, who we welcome into the esteemed group of the region’s filmmakers, The Asia Pacific Screen Academy,” said Chair of the Asia Pacific Screen Awards, Tracey Vieira. “In 2024, two thirds of our nominated films are debut or second films, representing the cinematic excellence of the next generation of Asia Pacific voices, and the unique and compelling stories they are choosing to tell.” 

Adam Elliot’s Memoir of a Snail (Australia; pictured, right) has received a nomination for Best Animated Film, one of five outstanding works that represent a broad range of animation styles from classic hand-drawn to rotoscoping, motion capture and claymation. Elliot’s previous feature Mary and Max won the APSA in the same category in 2008 at the 2nd annual event.

Memoir of a Snail is up against Yoko Kuno and Nobuhiro Yamashita’s Ghost Cat Anzu (Japan, France), Hur Bum-wook’s Pig That Survived Foot-and-Mouth Disease (Republic of Korea), Naoko Yamada’s The Colors Within (Kimi no Iro, Japan) and Carl Joseph Papa’s The Missing (Iti Mapukpukaw, Philippines).

APSA has, since its inception, celebrated films made for and about young people, and as a collection they provide insight into the unique and the universal issues facing young people across the region. Magic Beach (Australia), the live action and animated omnibus adaptation of Alison Lester’s classic children’s book, is nominated for Best Youth Film and was previously a recipient of the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund in its early script development stages.

Magic Beach will be competing alongside Lakshmipriya Devi’s Boong (India), Qu Youjia’s She Sat There Like All Ordinary Ones (Kai Shi De Qiang, People’s Republic of China; pictured, right), Antoinette Jadaone’s Sunshine (Philippines), and Rachel House’s The Mountain (New Zealand). 

Three further feature film awards will be announced and in 2024 are supported by the Top 51 World Filmmakers Club as a Major Partner. These categories are Best New Performer, in recognition of an exceptional debut or sophomore performance in a feature film; The Cultural Diversity Award, for outstanding contribution to the promotion and preservation of cultural diversity through film; and, the Young Cinema Award (in partnership with NETPAC) is awarded to an impressive first or second time feature director in recognition of the abundant emerging talent of the Asia Pacific.

The FIAPF AWARD is determined by APSA founding partner FIAPF–International Federation of Film Producers Associations for outstanding achievement in film in the Asia Pacific region. Also to be announced during the 17th Asia Pacific Screen Awards Ceremony are the four recipients of the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund grants of US$25,000 wholly supported by the MPA (Motion Picture Association) Asia Pacific. 

APSA’s theme in 2024, Land, holds profound significance across the Asia Pacific, encompassing traditional, cultural, and historical meanings, and serves as a powerful lens through which we can explore the relationship between identity, sovereignty, and the stories we tell through film.

In 2024, an unprecedented number of nominated films are set for Australian theatrical release across the peak summer box office period, allowing local audiences the opportunity to connect with the best cinema of the region. These include APSA frontrunner All We Imagine as Light (Rialto, 30 Jan), Magic Beach (Madman, Jan 16), The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Sharmill, 23 Jan), No Other Land (Hi Gloss, 21 Nov), Ghost Cat Anzu (Kismet, Dec 5; pictured, right), The Colors Within (Kismet), Hesitation Wound (Arcadia), the recently released The Mountain (Madman) and Memoir of a Snail, which opens this week (Madman). 

The 17th Asia Pacific Screen Awards on Saturday 30 November and the 6th Asia Pacific Screen Forum, 27-30 November, will be held at The Langham, Gold Coast, on the traditional land of the Kombumerri families of the Yugambeh language region.

PARASITE, BEANPOLE LEAD HONOUREES AT 2019 ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN AWARDS

Adding further momentum towards anticipated Oscar glory, Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite has claimed Best Feature Film at the 13^th Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) last night in Brisbane, Australia. The breakout international success story of 2019 turned its single nomination into the night’s biggest prize, the first win for Korea in the Best Feature Film category since Lee Chang-dong’s Secret Sunshine took out the inaugural prize in 2007.

Producer Jang Young-hwan accepted the award (pictured, below), a unique handcrafted glass vessel by Brisbane artist Joanna Bone, on the night. The honour also comes as the Asia Pacific Screen Forum, running concurrently with the awards festivities, focuses on 100 years of Korean cinema.

Stories encompassing thirteen countries and areas within the vast Asia Pacific region were awarded, with the majority of the winners also being their country’s Official Submission for the Academy Awards® in the Best International Feature Film Category. Thirty-seven films from 22 countries and areas of the Asia Pacific region achieved nominations for the prestigious awards, drawn from the 289 films in APSA competition.

The Australian sector was honoured with the Best Youth Feature Film, the prize taken out by Rodd Rathjen’s Buoyancy, produced by Causeway Films’ Sam Jennings and Kristina Ceyton. The Khmer and Thai language film, shot in Cambodia, is the story of 14 year-old Cambodian Chakra who leaves home in search of a better life only to be enslaved on a fishing trawler. Co-directors Rachel Leah Jones and Phillipe Bellaiche’s Advocate, an Israeli production that recounts the story of Jewish Israeli human rights lawyer Lea Tsemel, beat the only other local nominee, Daniel Gordon’s The Australian Dream, for the Best Documentary trophy.

Director Kantemir Balagov’s Russian wartime drama Beanpole was the only film to take home two APSA awards - Best Cinematography honouree Ksenia Sereda (pictured, right), the first woman to win the APSA in this category, and Balagov and Alexander Terekhov for Best Screenplay. Best Director winner Adilkhan Yerzhanov, helmer of the Kazakh noir feature A Dark, Dark Man, was the focus of the Director’s Chair session at the inaugural Asia Pacific Screen Forum and accepted the award on the night. It is his second award following the APSA NETPAC Development Prize win in 2013 (now the Young Cinema Award) for Constructors.

Acting trophies will be travelling to new homes in The Philippines and India. Max Eigenmann won Best Actress for her role as a woman fighting to free her life of domestic violence in Raymund Ribay Gutierrez’s Verdict, for acclaimed producer Brilliante Mendoza. Celebrated Indian actor Manoj Baypayee earned Best Actor honours for his role in Devashish Makhija’s Bhonsle; Bajpayee’s win, his second APSA gong, marks a staggering four years in a row that an Indian performer has won in this category.

Beating out highly favoured fellow nominees The Unseen and Mosley, Weathering With You (Japan) was named Best Animated Feature. The film is directed by Makoto Shinkai, who also took home the inaugural APSA in this category in 2007 for 5 Centimetres Per Second.

The APSA International Jury awarded a Jury Grand Prize to Palestinian filmmaker Elia Suleiman, who wrote, directed, produced and starred in APSA-nominated film It Must Be Heaven. Suleiman was also awarded the APSA Jury Grand Prize in 2009 for The Time That Remains. The prestigious Cultural Diversity Award under the patronage of UNESCO was awarded to Rona, Azim’s Mother (Islamic Republic of Iran; Afghanistan) by brothers Jamshid and Navid Mahmoudi. This award represents APSA’s founding partnership with UNESCO, and the shared goals of the two organisations in the protection and preservation of cultural identity.

The winner of the FIAPF (International Federation of Film Producers Associations) Award for Outstanding Achievement in Film goes to Katriel Schory, one of the most respected figures of Israeli cinema. Schory produced more than 150 titles through is production company BelFilms Ltd and served for twenty years as Executive Director of Israel’s main film funding body, where he produced and promoted 300 films. He is credited with revitalising Israel’s film industry through an emphasis on diversity and international co-production treaties, opening the country’s cinema up to the global audiences.

The APSA Young Cinema Award has been won by emerging Indian filmmaker Ridham Janve whose feature The Gold-Laden Sheep and The Sacred Mountain (pictured, above) was also nominated for Best Feature Film and Achievement in Cinematography.

Also announced during the APSA Ceremony were the four recipients of the 10^th MPA APSA Academy Film Fund. Created to support the development of new feature film projects by APSA Academy members, the fund awards four development grants of US$25,000 annually. In 2019, the four recipients are Delphine Garde-Mroueh & Nadia Eliewat (UAE/France) for The Station; Rachel Leah Jones (Israel/United States of America) for Reality Check; Catherine Fitzgerald (New Zealand) for Sweet Lips; and, Dechen Roder (Bhutan) for I, The Song.

ELEVEN NATIONAL FILM SECTORS RECOGNISED IN APSA 2018 HONOURS

The 12^th Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) ceremony proved a true celebration of cinema from the region, with awards being bestowed upon films from Australia, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Lebanon, People’s Republic of China, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Singapore and Turkey. The gala ceremony, held in the main room of the The Brisbane Exhibition & Convention Centre, was hosted by New Zealand actor Cliff Curtis (Once Were Warriors; Whale Rider, The Meg) and Australian television personality Sofie Formica (pictured, below).

Kore-eda Hirokazu’s Shoplifters (Manbiki Kazoku) can now add an APSA to its list of growing international trophies after winning the Best Film honour. Having earned the Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d’Or in May and already slated as Japan’s official entry in the Best Foreign Film Oscar race, the prolific filmmaker’s family drama is proving to be one of the most warmly received films in a career filled with critical and commercial hits. The film’s producer Taguchi Hijiri accepted the award on his director’s behalf.

APSA International Jury President Alexander Rodnyansky, Russian producer of 2014 APSA Best Feature Film winner Leviathan, 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. I have discovered new worlds by watching them.” On the Best Film winner, he declared, “Shoplifters turns an intimate story about an unusual family into a metaphorical social analysis that is relevant not only for Japan, but everywhere.”

Rodnyansky (second from left) oversaw a jury that included (from left) Chilean actress Antonia Zegers, Indonesian director Nia Dinata, Nepalese filmmaker Deepak Rauniyar and Georgian producer Vladimer Katcharava. They awarded this year’s Grand Jury Prize to Lee Joon-dong and Lee Chang-dong for Burning (Republic of Korea), winner of the Cannes FIPRESCI Prize in 2018. The Korean filmmaking team is popular with APSA judges, having previously earned four awards. The unmistakable trophies, designed by Brisbane artist Joanna Bone, feature prominently in the apartment of star Steven Yuen in a scene from Burning.

The Cultural Diversity Award under the Patronage of UNESCO was awarded to Garin Nugroho and Ifa Isfansyah for Memories of My Body (Kucumbu Tubuh Indahku; pictured, right) from Indonesia and accepted on the night by lead actor Muhummad Khan. Nugroho will now present a screening of the film on December 15 in Paris at UNESCO Headquarters as part of the Intergovernmental Committee meeting on the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.

In one of the evening's most moving moments, Indian actress-turned-filmmaker Nandita Das was awarded the FIAPF Award for Achievement in Film in the Asia Pacific Region. In her acceptance speech, the passionate advocate for civil liberties and human rights cited her early work in Deepa Mehta's lesbian romance Fire, a film that changed the landscape of Indian cinema 22 years ago and which still inspires her today. Her latest work, Manto, a biographical account of writer Saadat Hasan Manto's life in 1940s India, earned her leading man Nawazuddin Siddiqi the Best Actor APSA trophy.

The Australian sector was recognized in the Best Documentary Feature Film category, where director Paul Damien Williams and producer Shannon Swan were honoured for Gurrumul, the first win for Australia in this category at APSA. Also recognised were Hildur Guðnadóttir and the late Jóhann Jóhannsson for Mary Magdalene, director Garth Davies’ UK/Australian co-production. Legendary musician and chair of the Music in Film jury, Ryuichi 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 full list of 2018 Asia Pacific Screen Award 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, Ifa Isfansyah

ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING:
Nadine Labaki for Capharnaüm (Lebanon)

SPECIAL MENTION FOR 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) 

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)

JAPAN, PRC LEAD NOMINEES FOR 2018 ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN AWARDS

Japan and the People’s Republic of China lead the field of nominees at the 2018 Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA), with their respective industries securing 7 nominations each. The pack tightens behind them, with Australia, India and Kazakhstan each earning 5 nominations in key categories.

The 12^th annual celebration of Asia Pacific cinema, a sector that provides half the world’s film output, features 46 films from 22 countries. Kore-Eda Hirokazu’s Palme d’Or winner Shoplifters (Japan; pictured, top) stands alone at the head of the nominee list with three nominations, including Film, Director and Screenplay nods. The film has sentimental ties to the APSAs, with star Kirin Kiki the 2015 Best Actress award winner for Naomi Kawase’s An; a beloved figure in Asian cinema, she passed away in September, aged 75.

Four other titles earned dual nominations - Lee Chang-dong’s Burning (Republic of Korea); Adilkhan Yerzhanov’s The Gentle Indifference of the World (Kazakhstan, France; pictured, right); Khavn’s Balangiga: Howling Wilderness (Philippines); and, Phuttiphong Aroonpheng’s Manta Ray (Thailand, People’s Republic of China, France).

The Australian sector’s five noms came across four categories. Paul Damien William’s Gurrumul will vie for the Best Documentary honour; amongst the Best Actress contenders is US actress Rooney Mara for Garth Davis’ Mary Magdalene; veteran Bruce Beresford earned his first APSA Best Director nomination for Ladies in Black; and, in the Best Original Score race, Harry Gregson-Williams (for Simon Baker’s Breath) and Hildur Guðnadóttir and the late Jóhann Jóhannsson (for Mary Magdalene) will compete.

The APSA nominee family expands in 2018 with the first ever contender from Uzbekistan. Best Actor nominee Karim Mirkhadiyev (pictured, left), star of Rashid Malikov’s stirring father/son drama Fortitude, will carry his nation’s hopes against a formidable field, including Nawazuddin Siddiqui (Manto; India), child actor and former Syrian refugee Zain Al Rafeea (Capharnaüm; Lebanon), Bahman Farmanara (Tale of the Sea; Islamic Republic of Iran) and Akylbek Abdykalykov (Night Accident; Kyrgyzstan).

Rooney faces a tough field of Best Actress contenders - Zhao Tao (Ash is Purest White; People’s Republic of China, France); Damla Sönmez (Sibel; Turkey, France, Germany, Luxembourg); Cannes Best Actress winner Samal Yeslyamova (Ayka; Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, People’s Republic of China, Germany, Poland); and, deaf actress Laura Koroleva (Sveta; Kazakhstan).

The awards, overseen by APSA Academy President Jack Thompson, will be held at a black-tie event on Thursday, 29 November 2018 at Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre. Further details can be found at the official website.    

COMPLETE LIST OF 12^th ASIA PACIFIC SCREEN AWARD NOMINATIONS

BEST FEATURE FILM
Balangiga: Howling Wilderness (Philippines; Dir: Khavn)
Burning (Republic of Korea; Dir: LEE Chang-dong
The Gentle Indifference of the World (Laskovoe Bezrazlichie Mira) (Kazakhstan, France; Dir Adilkhan YERZHANOV)
Manta Ray (Kraben Rahu) (Thailand, People’s Republic of China, France; Dir: Phuttiphong AROONPHENG)
Shoplifters (Manbiki Kazoku) (Japan; Dir: KORE-EDA Hirokazu)

BEST YOUTH FEATURE FILM
Ava (Islamic Republic of Iran, Qatar, Canada; Dir: Sadaf FOROUGHI)
Nervous Translation (Philippines; Dir: Shireen SENO)
Passage of Life (Boku no kaeru basho) (Japan, Myanmar; Dir: Akio FUJIMOTO)
The Pigeon (Güvercin) (Turkey; Dir: Banu SIVACI; trailer, below)
Village Rockstars (India; Dir: Rima DAS)

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Hoffmaniada (Russian Federation; Dir: Stanislav SOKOLOV)
Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms (Sayonara no asa ni yakusoku no hana o kazarô
(Japan; Dir: Mari OKADA)
Mirai (Mirai no Mirai) (Japan; Dir: Mamoru HOSODA)
On Happiness Road (Hsing Fu Lu Shang) (Taiwan; Dir: SUNG Hsin-Yin)
Rezo (Znaesh’, mama, gde ya byl) (Russian Federation; Dir: Leo GABRIADZE)

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
Amal (Egypt, Lebanon, Qatar, France, Germany, Norway, Denmark; Dir: Mohamed SIAM)
Gurrumul (Australia; Dir: Paul Damien WILLIAMS)
Of Fathers and Sons (Syrian Arab Republic, Lebanon, Qatar, Germany; Dir: Talal DERKI; trailer, below)
Of Love & Law (Japan, United Kingdom, France; Dir: Hikaru TODA)
Up Down & Sideways (kho ki pa lü) (India; Dir: Anushka MEENAKSHI, Iswar SRIKUMAR)

ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING
Nadine LABAKI for Capharnaüm (Lebanon)
Bruce BERESFORD for Ladies in Black (Australia)
Emir BAIGAZIN for The River (Ozen; Kazakhstan, Norway, Poland)
KORE-EDA Hirokazu for Shoplifters (Manbiki Kazoku; Japan)
Ivan AYR for Soni (India)

ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY
Saumyananda SAHI for Balekempa (India)
Hideho URATA for A Land Imagined (Singapore, France, Netherlands)
Nawarophaat RUNGPHIBOONSOPHIT for Manta Ray (Kraben Rahu; Thailand, People’s Republic of China, France; trailer, below)
Chaiyapruek CHALERMPORNPANIT for Malila: The Farewell Flower (Thailand)
ZHANG Miaoyan, XU Zhiyong for Silent Mist (People’s Republic of China, France)

BEST SCREENPLAY
Payman MAADI for Bomb, A Love Story (Bomb, Yek Asheghaneh; Islamic Republic of Iran)
OH Jung-mi, LEE Chang-dong for Burning (Republic of Korea)
Adilkhan YERZHANOV, Roelof Jan MINNEBOO for The Gentle Indifference of the World (Laskovoe Bezrazlichie Mira; Kazakhstan, France)
KORE-EDA Hirokazu for Shoplifters (Manbiki Kazoku; Japan)
Dan KLEINMAN, Sameh ZOABI for Tel Aviv on Fire (Israel, Belgium, France, Luxembourg)

CULTURAL DIVERSITY AWARD UNDER THE PATRONAGE OF UNESCO
Ala Changso (People’s Republic of China; Dir: Sonthar GYAL)
Balangiga: Howling Wilderness (Philippines; Dir: Khavn)
The Lord Eagle (Toyon Kyyl) (Russian Federation; Dir: Eduard NOVIKOV)
Memories of My Body (Kucumbu Tubuh Indahku) (Indonesia; Dir: Garin NUGROHO; trailer, below)
The Taste of Rice Flower (Mi Hua Zhi Wei) (People’s Republic of China; Dir: Pengfei)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS
ZHAO Tao for Ash is Purest White (Jiang hu er nv; People’s Republic of China, France)
Samal YESLYAMOVA for Ayka (Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, People’s Republic of China, Germany, Poland)
Rooney MARA for Mary Magdalene (Australia, United Kingdom)
Damla SÖNMEZ for Sibel (Turkey, France, Germany, Luxembourg)
Laura KOROLEVA for Sveta (Kazakhstan)

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR
Zain AL RAFEEA for Capharnaüm (Lebanon)
Karim MIRKHADIYEV for Fortitude (Sabot; Uzbekistan)
Nawazuddin SIDDIQUI for Manto (India)
Akylbek ABDYKALYKOV for Night Accident (Tunku Kyrsyk; Kyrgyzstan)
Bahman FARMANARA for Tale of the Sea (Hekayat-e Darya; Islamic Republic of Iran)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Eléni KARAÏNDROU for Bomb, A Love Story (Bomb, Yek Asheghaneh; Islamic Republic of Iran)
Harry GREGSON-WILLIAMS for Breath (Australia)
Hildur GUÐNADÓTTIR, Jóhann JÓHANNSSON for Mary Magdalene (Australia, United Kingdom)
Ryan CAYABYAB for The Portrait (Ang Larawan; Philippines)
Omar FADEL for Yomeddine (Egypt)