Chinese Film on Covid-19 Wins Big at Taiwan's Golden Horse Awards Amid Political Tensions

A Chinese film has made history by sweeping the top prizes at Taiwan’s prestigious Golden Horse Awards. This year’s ceremony saw a record-breaking number of entries from China, despite ongoing political tensions between the two sides.

The win comes just two years after Beijing imposed a ban on Chinese entertainers attending the Golden Horse Awards. The ban was implemented in response to a Taiwanese director’s pro-independence speech in 2018.

This year’s victory marks a significant moment in the history of the Golden Horse Awards, highlighting the enduring power of cinema to transcend political boundaries.

Since the Taipei administration denies China's claim that Taiwan is part of its territory, Chinese celebrities and major motion pictures have mostly shunned the event.

Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) reported that more than 200 Chinese films joined this year's competition, the most in "recent years" despite the awards' delicate nature.

Lou Ye, a Chinese filmmaker, won both best picture and best director for his documentary An Unfinished Film. For his role in Geng Jun's same-sex play Bel Ami, Zhang Zhiyong was awarded best actor. Chung Suet-ying of Hong Kong took up the best actress award for her performance in The Way We Talk. These movies might not be shown in mainland China, according to MAC spokesperson Liang Wen-chieh.

"We welcome (them) very much," he said.

After a lengthy break, Chinese celebrities are making a comeback to the Golden Horse Awards in Taipei. Geng Jun and his ensemble will be joining celebrities from Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Japan. Bel Ami, directed by Geng, took home honors for both editing and cinematography. Taiwanese film reviewer Wonder Weng claims that the Golden Horse Awards continue to serve as a venue for independent Chinese films that do not have distribution on the mainland. One "work of conscience" is Lou's An Unfinished Film.

Weng said An Unfinished Film by Lou, who has previously taken on forbidden subjects such as gay sex and the 1989 Tiananmen protests, was "a work of conscience".