The Golden Horse Film Festival – and its counterpart, the Golden Horse Awards Ceremony, has always been a highlight for any devotee of Chinese language cinema. During one year or another, some of the biggest luminaries found their start or were pushed to further prominence, thanks to the recognition received here. Jackie Chan, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, Wong Kar-wai, Ang Lee, Hou Hsiao-hsien, Tsai Ming-Liang, and the list of names goes on.
The festival takes place for the better part of November in the capital city of Taipei. The Taiwanese government, along with its organisers, pulls out all the stops to make it the locus of all things Chinese cinema including organizing conventions for project pitching as well as further opportunities for filmmakers to secure investments and grants.
While most of the excitement during Golden Horse Awards night takes place onstage – and live on television screens worldwide; what’s not seen is the rush of adrenaline and action happening backstage as presenters get ready, award winners mingle, and the hundreds of people running around to make it all go as efficiently as possible. Here are pictures from behind the scenes you missed:
Malaysian director Chong Keat Aun (center) arrives at the red carpet. His film, ‘Snow in Midsummer’ was the opening title for the festival.Takeshi Kitano, whose career has spanned decades and is a household name in Japan, presented an award at the ceremony.Japanese actress, singer and model, Hikari Mitsushima poses for a photo.Ethan Juan (right) who came to prominence for his performance in ‘Monga’ and ‘Fated to Love You’ backstage.Satoshi Tsumabuki takes a selfie with fellow actors, Hikari Mitsushima, Greg Hsu, and Chang Chen.Chair of this year’s Golden Horse jury, Ang Lee and Best Actor winner, Wu Kang-ren embraces one another.The Golden Horse staff inspecting and preparing the statuettes for all the winners.The emblem of a galloping horse, which has come to define the spirit of the festival, was symbollically chosen to represent the tireless dedication, stamina and vigor required to push cinema forward.Class photo of the 2023 Golden Horse Award winners.12-year-old Audrey Lin makes history as the youngest best actress winner at 60th Golden Horse Awards.Best Actor winner Wu Kang-ren and Best Actress winner Audrey Lin poses with their statuettes for photographers and the press.
Featured image: Wu Kang-ren takes a selfie with Ang Lee.
All pictures provided courtesy of 圖為金馬執委會提供 The Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Executive Committee
