The 14th Shanghai Television Festival closed the curtain with an evening
of glitz Friday night as the coveted Magnolia awards were handed out at the
Oriental Pearl TV Tower in Pudong.
Top television productions and a long list of producers, directors, actors
and animators were honored.
The festival began last Monday and more than 60 entries from home and abroad
were vying for awards.
"Let's Go to the Movies Tomorrow," produced by Akson Studio and TVP SA-Film
Agency, earned the Magnolia for best TV film. It is a romantic story of
high-school students who received their diplomas in May of 1938.
John Alexander, who helmed "Sense and Sensibility," won the Magnolia for best
TV film director.
"Jury Duty" from France won the best screenplay award for TV film.
Best actor went to Alessio Boni for his performance in Italian TV movie
"Caravaggio," and actress Hattie Morahan, who played the lead role in "Sense and
Sensibility," was named best actress.
In the TV series category, China's Jiang Wenli earned the best actress award
for her role in "Golden Wedding."
"The production team was outstanding - I will never forget the four months I
spent with the team," Jiang said.
Zhang Guoli won best actor for "Golden Wedding." He said: "I have played
roles in TV series for 26 years and it means a lot to win the award as China
celebrates the 50th anniversary of its TV industry."
It was a case of triple treat for "Golden Wedding" as director Zheng Xiaolong
also received a Magnolia.
"Soldiers' Sortie" won the awards for both best TV series and screenplay.
"Things you Think: Poor and Rich" from Germany received the top award for
foreign animation, while "Big-eared Tutu Season II" took the best Chinese
animation award.
The best natural documentary award went to "Ganges - Water Land" from
Britain; the best social documentary was won by "Hong," a China-Germany
co-production; the best history and biography documentary award was taken out by
"The Rape of Nanking," a French production; and the best Asian documentary award
went to "The Secret in the Satchel" from Taiwan.
"Achieving the Unachievable" from Canada won the special jury award inthe
documentary category.