Even if the total box office revenue of 2016 does not exceed 60 billion yuan, it was still a rewarding year for Chinese film makers.
From International Film Festivals in Berlin and Venice, to the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival, film makers from the Chinese mainland took home top awards throughout the year.
"Crosscurrent" wins Silver Bear for Cinematography in Berlin
In February, at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival, Mark Lee Ping-Bing won the Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution for Cinematography in the Chinese drama film "Crosscurrent", or "Chang Jiang Tu". Directed by Yang Chao, the movie is a masterly shot meditation on the Yangtze River, steeped in symbolism and philosophical reflections.
"Crosscurrent"
"Bitter Money" gets Horizons Award for Best Screenplay in Venice
In September, Chinese director Wang Bing's film "Bitter Money", or "Ku Qian", took the Horizons Award for Best Screenplay at the 73rd Venice International Film Festival. The movie follows three young people leaving their Yunnan hometown in the pursuit of a better life.
Feng Xiaogang's film gets FIPRESCI Special Presentations prize
Also in September, Chinese director Feng Xiaogang was awarded the Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) for Special Presentations for his latest production "I Am Not Madame Bovary" at the Toronto Film Festival.
Jackie Chan wins honorary Oscar
And kung fu superstar Jackie Chan finally is an Academy Award winner after 56 years in the film industry. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded Chan an honorary Oscar for his "extraordinary achievements" in film at the Academy's 8th Annual Governors Awards ceremony on November 12.
Jackie Chan wins honorary Oscar
Major Golden Horse trophies all clinched by movies from mainland
Filmmakers from the Chinese mainland swept up the major trophies at the Taiwan Golden Horse Awards, the equivalent to the Oscars for Mandarin-language cinema.
Veteran mainland director Feng Xiaogang secured his third Golden Horse win with “I Am Not Madame Bovary".
Fan Wei won best lead actor for his performance in the movie “Mr. No Problem,” in which he plays a farm manager in the rural China of the 1940s.
The best actress award was shared by two mainland actresses Zhou Dongyu and Ma Sichun for the same movie "Soul Mate."
The best actress award was shared by two mainland actresses Zhou Dongyu and Ma Sichun for the same movie "Soul Mate."
And the best feature went to Chinese director Zhang Dalei’s “The Summer Is Gone,” about a young boy’s summer vacation in Inner Mongolia in the early 1990s. Kong Weiyi took home Best New Performer Award for his role in the movie.
