"The Golden Era" earned five big nominations at the 2015 Asian Film Awards as revealed during the award-giving body’s announcement on Feb. 25.
The film is vying for the best director (Ann Hui), best actress (Tang Wei), best supporting actor (Wang Zhiwen), best screenwriter and best editor tilts.
With four nominations each, the films "Black Coal, Thin Ice," "Gone with the Bullets" and "Blind Massage" are also strong competitors for the prestigious awards. "Black Coal" has earned a Golden Bear Award in 2014 and a Berlin Film Festival award under its belt.
Chinese productions and Hong Kong-Chinese joint filmmaking ventures lead this year's set of nominees with a total of 26 nominations. Japan and South Korea followed with 17 and 16 nominations, respectively.
The Asian Film Awards' jury will be headed by Mabel Cheung, a Hong Kong director-producer known for the films "An Autumn's Tale" and "Echoes of the Rainbow." The 14-member body will also include Aaron Kwok of "After This Our Exile."
The awarding ceremony will be held on March 25 at The Venetian Theater in Macau.
First founded in 2013 by the Busan International Film Festival, Tokyo International Film Festival, and Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, the upstart, continent-wide award-giving body is organized by the Asian Film Awards Academy.
Below is the complete list of nominees for the major categories:
Best Film
Black Coal, Thin Ice (China)
Blind Massage (China)
Haider (India)
Hill of Freedom (South Korea)
Ode to My Father (South Korea)
The Light Shines Only There (Japan)
Best Director
Lou Ye, Blind Massage (China)
Tsukamoto Shinya, Fires on The Plain (Japan)
Lav Diaz, From What Is Before (The Philippines)
Vishal Bhardwaj, Haider (India)
Hong Sang-soo, Hill Of Freedom (South Korea)
Ann Hui, The Golden Era (Hong Kong, China)
Best Actor
Liao Fan, Black Coal, Thin Ice (China)
Kase Ryo, Hill Of Freedom (South Korea)
Sean Lau Ching-wan, Overheard 3 (Hong Kong, China)
Ethan Ruan, Paradise in Service (Taiwan)
Choi Min-sik, Roaring Currents (South Korea)
Satoh Takeru, Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends (Japan)
Best Actress
Bae Doo-na, A Girl at My Door (South Korea)
Gong Li, Coming Home (China)
Zhao Wei, Dearest (Hong Kong, China)
Kaiki Koechlin, Margarita, With a Straw (India)
Miyazawa Rie, Pale Moon (Japan)
Tang Wei, The Golden Era (Hong Kong, China)