Drive My Car wins 16th Asian Film Awards Best Film!

The elegant award ceremony was attended by the best and brightest of the Asian film industry, all gathered under one roof in Hong Kong for this prestigious event

13 March 2023

The 16th Asian Film Awards was successfully held on Sunday night, March 12th, at the Hong Kong Palace Museum. Sixteen competitive prizes and four honorary prizes were given out. Drive My Car won a total of three prizes: Best Film, Best Editing and Best Original Music; KORE-EDA Hirokazu won Best Director for Broker; Tony LEUNG Chiu Wai won his second AFA Best Actor prize with Where the Wind Blows; for her performance in Decision to Leave, TANG Wei won the Best Actress prize, which was accepted on her behalf by her co-star PARK Hae-il. Last but not least, Sammo HUNG received this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award. The elegant award ceremony was attended by the best and brightest of the Asian film industry, all gathered under one roof in Hong Kong for this prestigious event.

A total of 30 films from 22 countries and regions were nominated for 16 prizes at the 16th Asian Film Awards. Frontrunner Drive My Car picked up three prizes: Best Film, Best Editing and Best Original Music. In the acceptance speech for their Best Film prize, the Drive My Car team expressed their gratitude to the cast and crew for their outstanding work and for their mutual rapport on the set. Winning Best Director for Broker, director KORE-EDA Hirokazu says that he felt blessed for working with his Korean team and that he hopes to work with other countries in the future. In addition to receiving the Asian Film Contribution Award for his contribution to the development of film culture in Asia and beyond, Tony LEUNG Chiu Wai also received his second AFA for Best Actor for Where the Wind Blows. Leung said that the award took him by surprise and expressed his praise for the other nominees in the category. For his honorary award, Leung also expressed his gratitude to all of his collaborators in front of and behind the camera over the past 40 years of his career.

Sammo HUNG, the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award, gave a touching acceptance speech. He thanked the AFA Academy for the award and expressed his surprise at the honour. Excellence in Asian Cinema Award recipient ABE Hiroshi, who also won the AFA16 x STI Best Dressed Award, said that he was honored to receive this special award in Hong Kong and that he hopes to make a film in Hong Kong again.

Other films that received awards include MIYAZAWA Hio won Best Supporting Actor for Egoist; KIM So-jin won Best Supporting Actress for Emergency Declaration; Jigme Trinley won Best New Director for One and Four, which also won Best Cinematography; in addition to Best Actress, Decision to Leave also won Best Screenplay and Best Production Design. Host city Hong Kong also did well with a total of five awards: In addition to Tony LEUNG Chiu Wai’s Best Actor award, MAK Pui Tung won Best Newcomer for The Sparring Partner, Anita won Best Sound and Best Costume Design, and Warriors of Future won Best Visual Effects.

The 16th Asian Film Awards was simultaneously broadcast on YouTube, TVB’s J2 and Naver for audiences around the world. We thank you for your support and encouragement for the Asian Film Awards, helping us continue to shine.

The list of winners of the 16th Asian Film Awards:

Best Film：Drive My Car (Japan)

Best Director：KORE-EDA Hirokazu / Broker (South Korea)

Best Actor：Tony LEUNG Chiu Wai / Where the Wind Blows (Hong Kong)

Best Actress：TANG Wei / Decision to Leave (South Korea)

Best Supporting Actor：MIYAZAWA Hio / Egoist (Japan)

Best Supporting Actress：KIM So-jin / Emergency Declaration (South Korea)

Best New Director：Jigme Trinley / One and Four (Mainland China)

Best Newcomer：MAK Pui Tung / The Sparring Partner (Hong Kong)

Best Screenplay：CHUNG Seo-kyung, PARK Chan-wook / Decision to Leave (South Korea)

Best Editing：YAMAZAKI Azusa / Drive My Car (Japan)

Best Cinematography：LV Songye / One and Four (Mainland China))

Best Original Music：ISHIBASHI Eiko / Drive My Car (日本)

Best Costume Design：Dora NG, Karen YIP / Anita (Hong Kong)

Best Production Design：RYU Seong-hie / Decision to Leave (South Korea)

Best Visual Effects：Chas CHAU, LEUNG Wai Kit, KWOK Tai, LAW May / Warriors of Future (Hong Kong)

Best Sound：TU Duu-Chih, WU Shu-Yao / Anita (Hong Kong)

Asian Film Awards Academy

The Asian Films Awards Academy, a non-profit organisation, was founded by Busan, Hong Kong and Tokyo International Film Festivals with the shared goal of celebrating excellence in Asian cinema. Aiming to promote and recognize Asian films and its talents, AFAA highlights, strengthens and develops Asian film industry through the annual Asian Film Awards and several year-round initiatives.

The Asian Film Awards was inaugurated in 2007, where members of AFAA are drawn from its past nominees and winners. The category of awards includes Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Actress. Members vote for the Asian Film Awards and participate in various AFAA activities involving film professionals and audiences in Asia and around the world.

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