The Hong Kong Film Awards has shocked the industry with a major change! As one of Asia's most prestigious film honors, this year has seen the unannounced cancellation of the 'Best Asian Chinese-Language Film' category. This means that outstanding Chinese-language films from Taiwan, Mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia and other regions will be absent this year. In response, the Hong Kong Film Awards committee only gave a terse statement: 'No comment.'
The Hong Kong Film Awards established the 'Best Asian Film' category in 2002, which was renamed 'Best Cross-Strait Chinese-Language Film' in 2012, and expanded to 'Best Asian Chinese-Language Film' in 2020. It has long been an important benchmark for cross-regional exchange within the Chinese-language film industry. Taiwan's films in particular have excelled recently, with the previous two winners being 'The Pig, the Snake and the Pigeon' and 'The Great Buddha+' , winning consecutively.
It was expected that this momentum would continue this year, but the officially released rules have revealed that the category has quietly 'disappeared.' This means well-reviewed films that screened in Hong Kong in 2025, such as Taiwan's 'Left-Handed Girl' and '96 Minutes,' and China's hit 'Nezha: Birth of the Demon Child,' have been ruled out at just the registration phase.
Four Eligible Hong Kong Films Mysteriously 'Disappear'—Industry Left Baffled
It’s not just the exclusion of overseas Chinese-language films—suspicions have even arisen around several local Hong Kong films mysteriously 'disappearing.' Allegedly, four locally produced films, including 'Sin of Forgiveness' and 'On the Way to the Hospital,' which all met the entry requirements, were not listed in the official screening film list.
What’s baffling is that when handling the controversy over the documentary 'To My Nineteen-Year-Old Self' in 2023, the Awards Association insisted, 'There is no withdrawal mechanism,' and that any film meeting the threshold would automatically be added as a nominee. Now, films that are qualified are failing to get nominated, prompting veteran filmmaker Tin Kai-Man to express frustration during a radio interview. He said the situation is still being monitored, and added, 'I hope this kind of lack of transparency doesn't continue to happen, as it will confuse many people.'
Internal List Altered? Association's 'No Comment' Response Fuels Speculation
Insiders reveal that the Awards Association quietly changed its internal screening list at the beginning of January this year, removing previously referenced titles like 'Sin of Forgiveness.' Director Yeung Wing-Kwong, whose film 'I Should Be Happy Today' was similarly disqualified, admitted bewilderment in an interview, saying: 'I don’t know what happened either.' The official stance has been complete silence, responding only with 'no comment,' which has undoubtedly cast a shadow of uncertainty over this year's Hong Kong Film Awards.
Source: ETToday