Considered as one of the greatest actors Asia has ever produced, Tony Leung, has been declared as the jury president of the 37th Tokyo Film festival. The jury which is set to be announced at later date, will decide the main competition prizes at the esteemed film festival later this year.
The legendary Hong Kong acting icon has garnered immense amount of praises and awards for his performances in his films throughout his career. His partnership with the avant-garde director Wong Kar-wai propelled him to global acclaim. Working on seven films with the filmmaker, notably, “In the Mood for Love” (2000), “Chungking Express” (1994), “Happy Together" (1997), “2046” (2004), and their 2013 film, “The Grandmaster,” for which he attended the event of the screening at the Tokyo Film Festival.
Also known as Leung Chiu-wai, the actor also attended the festival last year for a master class session that he gave while also attending the screening for his beloved Wong classic, “2046”.
The point is, the actor who won the Golden Lion Lifetime Achievement Award at the Venice Film Festival in 2023, has been a part of the film festival for quite a few times now, and the reason is, he loves cinema, and he also loves the cherry blossom laden country. And this time since he’s been decided to head the jury of the festival he is overcome with joy.
“Japan is close to my heart in more ways than one. And to be involved in celebrating film in this way, is a big deal for me. From the age of 12, growing up in Hong Kong, I remember going to see all the classic Japanese movies from that time. These exciting trips to the cinema were the start of a great love affair between Japanese film, people and its culture for me, that has just grown and grown. I’m already expecting the festival to be full of surprises and a lot of fun to preside over, I’m sure. What I hope is that it will be a bit of an adventure, with an audacious line up of quality films. I just, ‘feel’, when it comes to judging, trusting fellow jurors’ feelings as well as my own, will make a positive contribution to the selection process,” said the actor in a prepared statement.
The chairman of the Tokyo Film Festival, Ando Hiroyasu, spoke on Leung’s participation in the festival, “We are very pleased and deeply honored that Mr. Tony Leung will be serving as jury president for the international competition at a time when [the Tokyo festival] is enhancing its presence as a leading film festival in Asia. Mr. Leung, who has an illustrious career as one of the world’s most critically lauded and internationally admired Asian actors, has participated in [Tokyo] several times in the past and has many fans in Japan. He will be a great addition to this year’s festival.”
The Tokyo Film Festival will be held for 10 days from October 28 through November 6 of this year.
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