A gay, black-and-white drama made by mainland Chinese director Geng Jun scooped several major prizes in the Golden Horse Awards in Taipei on Saturday. According to agency reports, this year’s awards saw more than 200 mainland films entered in the competition.
Geng’s film, Bel Ami, which was produced in France, won awards in the best leading actor, best cinematography and best editing categories. Geng accepted the best leading actor award on behalf of winner Zhang Zhiyong.
While same-sex relations aren’t illegal on the mainland, the central government does not recognise same-sex marriage and has been cracking down on cultural representations of LGBT people. Bel Ami has not been screened there. Same-sex marriage is legal on the island of Taiwan, but there are onerous conditions and discrimination against LGBT people continues to be widespread.
[See more: Japan’s first same-sex dating show is winning over international viewers]
Another of the night’s big winners was the Covid-19 docudrama An Unfinished Film, by mainland Chinese director Lou Ye. The film bagged best narrative feature and best director awards, both of which were collected by Lou’s wife, Ma Yingli, on his behalf. Like Bel Ami, the film has not been screened on the Chinese mainland.
In his acceptance speech, read by Ma, Lou described the movie as “the most special directing job I have ever done.”
Beijing banned the mainland’s film industry from participating in the Golden Horse awards in 2019, and the event is studiously avoided by the Chinese film industry’s top actors and main players. However, filmmakers from mainland China, often those whose work is banned or unlikely to be shown domestically, continue to participate in the awards.
