Actor Lien Binh Phat on Saturday became the first Vietnamese to win the Golden Bell Award for Best Leading Actor in a Television Series. He was also the first Vietnamese to be nominated since the awards — Taiwan’s equivalent of the Emmys — were established in 1965.
Lien, dressed in an ao dai, a traditional Vietnamese garment, said in his acceptance speech that he was grateful for the opportunity to act in Taiwan, adding that he hoped for an opportunity to return to Taiwan for other projects.
“I love Taiwan,” Lien said in Vietnamese. “Thank you for the kindness and gentleness shown to us.”
Photo: Hu Shun-hsiang, Taipei Times
Lien won award for his portrayal of doctor Fan Wen-ning (范文寧) in the multilingual medical drama The Outlaw Doctor (化外之醫).
In the show, Fan is a licensed cosmetic surgeon in Vietnam who becomes an underground doctor in Taiwan, performing unlicensed procedures for migrant workers, to earn enough money to cover his injured mother’s mounting medical bills.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday released a statement celebrating what he said was diversity in Taiwan’s entertainment industry.
Photo: Hu Shun-hsiang, Taipei Times
Cho personally congratulated Lien for his win, saying that the actor had skillfully captured the struggles of a person trying to keep his dignity while fighting to survive in a foreign land.
In the show, Fan’s secret work brings him in contact with migrant worker agent Liu Tien- cheng (劉天誠), who is portrayed by Weber Yang (楊一展).
Yang took home the award for Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series.
Meanwhile, the Netflix series Born for the Spotlight (影后), a drama about the unknown side of the entertainment industry, won the top prize at the Awards.
The drama, which highlights the good, the bad and the ugly of the entertainment industry, won Most Popular Drama Series, and Best Director, Best Leading Actress and Best Supporting Actress in a drama series.
The Best Leading Actress in a Television Series award went to Cheryl Yang (楊謹華), who dedicated her win to “all the hard-working actors and actresses who believe in themselves,” while Vicky Tseng (曾莞婷) took home the award for Best Supporting Actress for their performances in the drama. Director Yen Yi-wen (嚴藝文) won Best Television Director.
Black Tide Island (星空下的黑潮島嶼) led the trophy count with a near-sweep of all technical awards. It won Best Costume Design, Best Visual Effects, Best Cinematography, Best Lighting, Best Art and Design, and Best Theme Song.
The Best Miniseries award went to Public Television Service’s period drama Three Tears in Borneo (聽海湧).
The series focuses on a group of young Taiwanese men who find themselves entangled in a brutal massacre after they are conscripted by the Japanese colonial government to serve in North Borneo to guard Allied prisoners of war during World War II.
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