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June 26, 2025

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‘Black Red Yellow’ wins top honor at Shanghai film fest

THE 27th Shanghai International Film Festival has concluded, with Kyrgyzstan’s “Black Red Yellow” winning the Best Feature Film award — the top honor in the main competition.

Directed by Aktan Arym Kubat, an influential filmmaker in Central Asia, the poetic production revolves around a female carpet weaver’s forbidden love, farewell and long-time regrets. Color symbolism is woven into the film’s narrative — black signifies serenity and gravity, red evokes passion and impulsiveness, and yellow represents nostalgia and sorrow — creating a heartfelt portrait of tradition, character and fate.

Kubat said that this trophy is a gift to celebrate the birth of his newly-born grandson. “Black Red Yellow” was also the closing film of the film fest.

Giuseppe Tornatore, jury president of the festival’s Golden Goblet Awards, said: “Each competition film was unique, and magnificent.”

Chinese filmmaker Cao Baoping won the Best Director award for the comedy drama film “One Wacky Summer,” 10 years after he received the same award for his previous work “The Dead End” at the film festival.

“I have been sticking to the integration of a film director’s personal expression with high-intensity narrative,” said Cao. “It is a difficult process. But I won’t give up.”

Cao extended his gratitude to the Shanghai International Film Festival for its second-time recognition of his work since 2015. He added that the diversity and inclusiveness of the film festival had impressed him.

Chinese actress Wan Qian took home the Best Actress award for her impressive depiction of a complex, lonely and desperate woman in the movie “Wild Nights, Tamed Beasts.”

Wan said that it was the first time that she had been deeply involved in a movie from the early stages, and she witnessed and fully understood the hard work, efforts and passion of all crew members.

“The light of the movie shines on all of us,” said Wan. “All my companions standing firmly behind me are the ones who hold up this trophy for me.”

Portuguese actor José Martins’ superb acting in “The Scent of Things Remembered” earned him the Best Actor award. In the film, he vividly portrays an elderly veteran who has to face the shadow and trauma of a past war.

“In the past week, I have also been deeply impressed by the charm of Shanghai,” said Martins.

Japanese film “On Summer Sand” and Chinese film “Wild Nights, Tamed Beasts” shared the Jury Grand Prix.

Korek Bojanowski and Katia Priwieziencew shared the Best Screenplay award for the Polish film “Loss of Balance,” which centers on students’ dilemma in acting schools.

Markus Nestroy garnered the Best Cinematography award for German-Swiss production “You Believe in Angels, Mr Drowak?,” a film exploring humanity in marginalized communities.

“My Father’s Son,” co-production of China and France received the Outstanding Artistic Achievement award. Director Qiu Sheng, a Tsinghua University graduate studying brain-computer interface, said that the film is a commemoration of his late father.

This year’s Shanghai film festival received over 3,900 submissions, among which more than 1,820 films had their world premieres and over 520 had their international premieres, marking the highest overall premiere rate in the festival’s history.

In the Asian New Talent section, touching Chinese family drama film “As the Water Flows” by Bian Zhuo won the award for Best Feature Film.

Philippine filmmaker Liryc Dela Cruz won the Best Director award for “Where the Night Stands Still.” The Best Actor award went to Chinese actor Shi Pengyuan for “Water Can Go Anywhere” while Indian actress Meenakshi Jayan received the Best Actress award for “Victoria.”

Prabath Roshan garnered the Best Cinematography award for Sri Lankan film “Riverstone.” The film’s scriptwriters Lalith Rathnayake and Nilantha Perera shared the Best Screenplay award.

Spanish production “Constanza” was honored with the Best Documentary Film award.

“The Songbirds’ Secret,” a joint effort of France, Switzerland and Belgium, won the prize for Best Animation Film.

In the short film category, the Best Live Action Short Film award went to Chinese film “Crow,” while Russian-Kazakhstan production “Son” took the Best Animated Short Film title.

This year’s festival featured screenings of more than 400 movies from 71 countries and regions across 43 theaters in Shanghai, for a total of 1,500 screening sessions.




 

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