Thanks to willenette at EverythingLBH for the highlight of AFA article at Variety Asia
Hopefully our friends in Hong Kong will see & meet BH in March for the awards! This is indeed one of the best news for 2009.. for GBW and Byunghun-ssi, especially.
GBW is leading the AFA NOMs in 7 categories. Dir. Kim, SKH, JWS and Byunghun-ssi.. all with a NOMination each!
Way to go Nom Nom Nom!
Cowboys and Indians chase after the AFAs
Written by Marcus Lim

OFFICIAL WEBSITE asianfilmawards.org » 2009 Nomination List
HONG KONG – Korean Western “The Good, the Bad, the Weird” leads the list of nominations for this year’s Asian Film Awards.
Film, about a chase for treasure through the wilderness of Manchuria, collected 8 noms, including best feature film, best director and best cinematography, as well as a two way nod for Jung Woo-sung and Lee Byung-hun in the best supporting actor category.
Other best film contenders include Chen Kaige’s “Forever Enthralled,” Hayao Miyazaki’s “Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea,” Riri Riza’s “The Rainbow Troops, “Red Cliff” and “Tokyo Sonata.”
The kudosfest also announced the creation of a best newcomer category to augment the existing acting awards. The nominations were announced Wednesday by the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society (HKIFFS), organizers of the AFA.
In a nod to the award’s pan-Asian ambitions, the nominations this year also included a significant Bollywood contingent. Comedian Akshay Kumar and actress Deepika Padukone both received nods for their respective turns in “Singh is Kinng” and “Chandni Chowk to China,” while Hindi period epic “Jodhaa Akbar” came up for contention in the production design and composer categories.
Local Hong Kong films, however, were significantly shut out of the major creative categories. With the exception of favorite son John Woo (“Red Cliff”) running for the best director prize, and Nick Cheung stalking the best supporting actor category for his performance in Emperor Motion Pictures’ crime thriller “Beast Stalker,” no other Hong Konger or Hong Kong film was nominated in the acting, directing or best film categories.
The jury that will select the eventual winners is given some star power with former Bond-girl and “Crouching Tiger” alumnus Michelle Yeoh presiding over the panel.
The 13-member jury includes Peggy Chiao, chair of Taiwan’s Golden Horse Awards, as well as Kong Rithdee, Thailand correspondent for Variety.
The AFA will be held in Hong Kong, March 23.
NOMINATIONS FOR THE 3RD ASIAN FILM AWARDS
Best Film
Forever Enthralled (China)
The Good, The Bad, The Weird (South Korea)
Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (Japan)
The Rainbow Troops (Indonesia)
Red Cliff (China)
Tokyo Sonata (Japan/The Netherlands/Hong Kong)
Best Director
Feng Xiaogang, “If you are the one”
Kim Jee-woon, “The Good, the Bad, the Weird”
Koreeda Hirokazu, “Still Walking”
Brillante Mendoza, “Service”
Hayao Miyazaki/Frank Marshall, “Ponyo on the Cliff by the sea”
John Woo, “Red Cliff”
Best Actor
Ge You, “If you are the one”
Ha Jung-woo, “The Chaser”
Akshay Kumar, “Singh is Kinng”
Matsuyama Kenichi, “Detroit Metal City”
Motoki Masahiro, “Departures”
Song Kang-ho, “The Good, the Bad, the Weird”
Best Actress
Fukatsu Eri, “The Magic Hour”
Jiang Wenli, “And the Spring Comes”
Deepika Padukone, “Chandni Chowk to China”
Yoshinaga Sayuri, “Kabei – our Mother”
Zhou Wei, “Painted Skin”
Zhou Xun, “The Equation of Love and Death”
Best Newcomer
Matsuda Shota, “Boys Over Flowers: the Movie”
Sandrine Pinna, “Miao Miao”
So Ji-sub, “Rough Cut”
Xu Jian, “CJ7″
Jeeja Yanin, “Chocolate”
Yu Shaoqun, “Forever Enthralled”
Best Supporting Actor
Nick Cheung, “Beast Stalker”
Jung Woo-sung, “The Good, the Bad, the Weird”
Lee Byung-hun, “The Good, the Bad, the Weird”
Tsutsumi Shinichi, “Suspect X”
Wang Xueqi, “Forever Enthralled”
Best Supporting Actress
Aoi Yu, “Sex Is No Laughing Matter”
Jaclyn Jose, “Service”
Kiki Kirin, “Still Walking”
Kim Ji-yeong, “Forever the Moment”
Gina Pareno, “Service”
Best Screenwriter
Na Hong-jin, “The Chaser”
Li Qiang, “And the Spring Comes”
Tom Lin/Henry Tsai, “Winds of September”
Kurosawa Kiyoshi/Max Mannix/Tanaka Sachiko, “Tokyo Sonata”
Mitani Koki, “The Magic Hour”
Best Cinematographer
Ato Shoichi, “Paco and the Magical Book”
Cheng Siu-keung, “Sparrow”
Lee Mo-gae, “The Good, the Bad, the Weird”
Jola Dylewska, “Tulpan”
Wang Yu/Nelson Yu, “24 City” Continue reading ‘GBW for AFA in Hong Kong’