28th Taipei Film Awards: 'Da Meng' Big Winner with 5 Awards, Shu Qi's 'Girl' Gets Only Cinematography Despite 9 Nominations

The 28th Taipei Film Awards ceremony was postponed to the evening of the 12th due to Typhoon Gaemi. The Grand Prize went to the documentary 'Dance of the Soloist'. 'Da Meng' swept up five awards—Best Narrative Feature, Screenplay, Art Direction, Costume Design, and Best Original Film Song—making it the night's biggest winner. Best Actor and Actress awards were given respectively to Liu Kuan-ting for 'Double Happiness' and Lin Yi-ting for 'The Revenge of the Hateful Woman'.

Shu Qi's directorial debut 'Girl' was initially riding high, landing nine nominations including Best Narrative Feature, Director, Screenplay, and Supporting Actress. However, Shu Qi herself came up empty-handed in both the Director and Screenplay categories, and the film ended up taking home only the Best Cinematography award.

Tian Qiwen Wins First Award in 47 Years of Acting

Hong Kong star Tian Qiwen (also known as Tian Ji) won Best Supporting Actor for 'Double Happiness', marking the first acting award in his 47-year career. From his iconic role as 'Third Brother' in 'Shaolin Soccer' to finally standing on the awards stage, he was visibly emotional both on and off stage. He expressed heartfelt thanks to his family, jokingly adding, “I’d give my life to my wife.” When asked about Stephen Chow, Tian Ji said, “I hope he knows I won an award. Maybe he can consider me for his next film, and hopefully give me a pay raise!”

Continuing last year's Golden Horse momentum were 'Life Goes On' actress Chen Xuezhen and 'Left-Handed Girl' star Ma Shiyuan. Last year, Ma Shiyuan took home the Golden Horse for Best New Performer and this year won again with the New Talent Award; Chen Xuezhen, who won Golden Horse Best Supporting Actress last year, once again took the stage at Taipei Film Awards as 'Shui Yun'. She said it was already a great honor to be nominated alongside respected seniors and outstanding actors; to actually win and hold the trophy in her hands felt like “good luck arrived”, making her particularly grateful and appreciative.