Taiwanese actor Wing Fan (范植偉) on Wednesday won the Best Actor award at the 24th Three Continents Film Festival for his role in Brave 20, (鹹豆漿) the only Taiwanese film in competition at the festival in Nantes, France.
Three Continents is a film festival that recognizes Asian, African and Latin American films. Although this award does not come from a major film festival, Fan's success means wider recognition for this future star from Taiwan. The 22-year-old Hakka signed a 10-year contract two months ago with Wang Kar-wai's Jet Tone production company, joining Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Maggie Cheung.
PHOTO COURTESY OF ZOOM HUT
"I am very excited to have won the award and very thankful for director Wang Ming-tai (王明台) and all the crew members," said Fan, who is now in Beijing taking acting lessons. Wang, director of Brave 20, was present at the festival in France to accept the award on Fan's behalf.
Fan's rapid ascent has proved somewhat embarrassing for his mentor, Taiwanese director Chang Tso-chi (張作驥), who discovered Fan and made him the lead actor for both of his award-winning films, Darkness and Light (黑暗時光) and The Best of Times (美麗時光). Chang was recently overheard remarking that Fan had become too expensive to act in his movies.
Chang discovered Fan when the latter accompanied his girlfriend for an audition to Darkness and Light, and asked Chang for directions to the restroom. Fan won the leading role in the film and went on to act in many of Chang's television dramas.
Brave 20 is Fan's third movie and director Wang Ming-tai's debut feature film. Set in Taipei in the 1980s, it tells the story of two high school graduates who drop out of life for a year to avoid taking the college entrance exam. The young man played by Fan falls in love with his upstairs neighbor, a down-on-her-luck prostitute. The film is scheduled for release in February of 2003.
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