Asian Film Awards 2019: Lee Chang-dong’s Korean Drama ‘Burning’ Leads Nominations

Lee Chang-dong’s Cannes hit Burning scored the most nominations for the 2019 Asian Film Awards. The Korean mystery-drama was nominated for eight awards, including best film. Scroll down for nominations in major categories.

Other best film nominees were Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Shoplifters, Pema Tseden’s Jinpa, Wen Muye’s Dying To Survive, and Rajkumar Hirani’s Sanju. The nominations were announced in Hong Kong on Friday afternoon. The winners will be revealed at a ceremony in the same city on Sunday, March 17.

Cannes Palme d’Or winner Shoplifters, Sanju, and Zhang Yimou’s Shadow each garnered six nominations. Kore-eda’s acclaimed drama also won the top film prize at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards in November.

In Burning, Jong-su bumps into a girl who used to live in the same neighborhood as him, who asks him to look after her cat while on a trip to Africa. When back, she introduces Ben, a mysterious guy she met there, who confess a secret hobby. Well Go USA has U.S. rights.

Chinese-majority films collected 22 nominations, ahead of 14 from Japan and Korea. Indian titles received 11 nominations. It has been a strong 12 months for Asian cinema, with the likes of Shoplifters and Burning scoring major international awards and much acclaim. In 2018, three out of the world’s four biggest box office markets were in Asia and many territories are showing growth.

Nominations in key categories:

Best Film

Burning (South Korea)

Dying to Survive (China)

Jinpa (China)

Sanju (India)

Shoplifters (Japan)

Best Director

Lee Chang-dong, Burning

Pema Tseden, Jinpa

Rajkumar Hirani, Sanju

Hirokazu Kore-eda, Shoplifters

Fruit Chan, Three Husbands

Best Actor

Yoo Ah-in, Burning

Xu Zheng, Dying to Survive

Aaron Kwok, Project Gutenberg

Ranbir Kapoor, Sanju

Koji Yakusho, The Blood of Wolves

Best Actress

Zhao Tao, Ash Is Purest White

Samal Yeslyamova, Ayka

Han Ji-Min, Miss Baek

Sakura Ando, Shoplifters

Chloe Maayan, Three Husbands

Best Supporting Actor

Zhang Yu, Dying to Survive

Kwon Hae-hyo, Hotel by the River

Shinya Tsukamoto, Killing

Vicky Kaushal, Sanju

River Huang, Tracey

Best Supporting Actress

Jin Seo-yeon, Believer

Ding Ning, Cities of Last Things

Xu Qing, Hidden Man

Mayu Matsuoka, Shoplifters

Kara Wai, Tracey

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