'Lucky Lu' Tops MIFFest Malaysia Golden Global Awards
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- "Lucky Lu" (dir. Lloyd Lee Choi) won Best Film at the Malaysia Golden Global Awards on Saturday, closing the 9th Malaysia International Film Festival; the film is a U.S.-Canada co-production.
- Morad Mostafa won Best Director for "Aisha Can't Fly Away," a multinational co-production spanning Egypt, France, Germany, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Sudan.
- "The Red Hangar" swept the craft categories, taking Best Screenplay for Luis Emilio Guzmán and Best Cinematography for Diego Peguero; accepting, Peguero said the Chilean-Argentine-Italian drama "starts with a group of friends."
- Sri Lankan drama "Riverstone" won two acting prizes — Best Actor for Mahendra Perera and Best Supporting Actor for Priyantha Sirikumara — while Taiwan's Audrey Lin took Best Supporting Actress for "Girl."
- Best Actress was a tie between Ong Xuan Jing for Singapore's "Ah Girl" and Lila Gueneau for "Silent Rebellion"; "Ah Girl" also won the New Hope Award, and Spain-France's "Sirât" (dir. Oliver Laxe) took the Audience Choice Award.
- Wu Jing received the Excellent Achievement Award alongside a screening of "Blades of the Guardians," reserving his biggest thanks for his wife, whom he credited for her "unwavering support throughout his career."
- Lee Chang-dong accepted the Lifetime Achievement Award, telling the audience he'd take it "not as recognition, but as encouragement to keep making movies in the future."
Why it matters: With winners from at least 10 countries across North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, MIFFest positioned the Malaysia Golden Global Awards as a globally competitive ceremony rather than a regional showcase. Landing Lee Chang-dong's lifetime honor in only the festival's 9th edition gives that international pitch serious editorial credibility.
