Big budget films from Greater China, albeit three very different ones, dominated the nominations for the 2012 edition of the Asian Film Awards. And Iranian drama A Separation Jodaeiye Nader az Simin continued its run of accolades.

Amassing the biggest haul was Hong Kong-Chinese 3-D action film Flying Swords of Dragon Gate ???? with seven nominations, just ahead of Christian Bale-starring The Flowers of War ????? from China, and Taiwanese mega-production Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale ??????, with six each. A Separation claimed five nominations and Hong Kong-Chinese actioner Wu Xia ?? four.

The awards will be presented in Hong Kong on 19 Mar 2012 on the eve of the territory’s annual film industry convention, Hong Kong FilMart. Prizes will be decided by a jury headed by Singaporean director Eric KHOO ??? (pictured).

The six best film nominees included four foreign language Oscar contenders – Japan’s Post Card ?????? (2010), China’s Flowers, Taiwan’s Seediq Bale and Iran’s Separation – as well as Hong Kong/China co-production Flying Swords and India’s Zindagi na milegi dobara ???????? ?? ?????? ??????.
Other Oscar contenders from the region earned fewer AFA nominations; Hong Kong’s A Simple Life ?? collected two, The Philippines The Woman in the Septic Tank Ang babae sa septic tank two, and South Korea’s The Front Line ??? three.

Wilfred WONG ???, chairman of the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society ?????????, which organises the awards deviated from his prepared script to say that Asian film has still got some catching up to do compared with Hollywood in technical and story-telling terms. But he praised the diversity of the 32 films which earned nominations across the AFA’s 14 categories.

Source: Filmiz Asia