(Global Times) Starring Crystal Liu, Liu Ye, Yu Shaoqun and Leon Lai, Chinese-French co-production Night Peacock was awarded first prize at the Special Chinese Film Festival at the 40th Montreal World Film Festival (MWFF) on Tuesday, while When Larry Met Mary, directed by actor-director Wen Zhang won second prize.
Additionally, Chinese actor-director Yu Lan won the Bronze Zenith for the First Fiction Feature Film for her work If You Were Here.
Directed by French-Chinese director Dai Sijie, Night Peacock, which focuses on a romance between a French-Chinese girl and several men, is his latest work. His 2002 film The Little Chinese Seamstress starring Zhou Xun and Chen Kun was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the 60th Golden Globe Awards.
The film also marked the first time Crystal Liu, Night Peacock’s leading actress, has entered the Best Actress shortlist at a high-profile international film festival. Although she did not win the award, Liu was present at Tuesday’s closing ceremony as an award presenter at the invitation of MWFF President Serge Losique.
Regarded as one of the world’s five most important film events along with the Cannes, Berlin, Venice and Karlovy Vary film festivals, MWFF, which tends to focus more on art films, is held from late August to early September annually in Montreal, Canada.
Since the festival’s establishment in 1977, Chinese films such as 1986's Big Parade by Chen Kaige and 1999's Postmen in the Mountains by Huo Jianqi have also won awards at MWFF.
Source: Global Times