SHANGHAI, June 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Gala Night time of the twenty eighth Shanghai Worldwide Movie Pageant (SIFF) was held in Shanghai at present, bringing collectively filmmakers, trade professionals and audiences from world wide in celebration of cinema.
Working by way of June 20, this 12 months’s competition will current greater than 420 movies throughout over 1,600 screenings in Shanghai and cities all through the Yangtze River Delta. As one among solely 17 movie festivals worldwide to carry official A-list classification from FIAPF, SIFF continues to function a serious platform for worldwide cinematic alternate.
The winners of the Golden Goblet Awards shall be introduced on the Golden Goblet Awards Ceremony of the twenty eighth Shanghai Worldwide Movie Pageant on June 20.
A Night time of Cinema Alongside the Huangpu River
The Gala Night time reworked Shanghai right into a vibrant stage for world cinema, welcoming filmmakers, actors and trade professionals from world wide. Golden Goblet Awards jurors, nominated filmmakers and representatives of main Chinese language and worldwide productions gathered on the crimson carpet, showcasing the competition’s rising worldwide profile and affect.
One of many night’s most important moments was the presentation of the competition’s honorary awards. Famend actress and cultural ambassador Lisa Lu obtained the Lifetime Achievement Award, whereas acclaimed Chinese language director Zhang Yimou was honored with the Excellent Contribution to Chinese language Cinema Award, recognizing their distinctive achievements and enduring contributions to the event of cinema.
The celebration as soon as once more highlighted Shanghai’s distinctive position as a metropolis the place cinema, tradition and worldwide alternate converge.
Opening Movie Afterpiece Makes World Premiere
This 12 months’s opening movie, Afterpiece, made its world premiere as one of many competition’s most anticipated occasions. Directed by Keane T.Ok. Wong and produced by Derek Yee, the movie stars Stephen Fung, Chrissie Chau, Myolie Wu and Angela Yuen. The story follows a once-celebrated theatre director searching for artistic redemption whereas navigating the more and more blurred boundaries between efficiency and actuality.
Developed underneath a Hong Kong movie mentorship initiative pairing established filmmakers with rising administrators, Afterpiece displays the continued transmission of artistic expertise throughout generations in Hong Kong cinema.
Members of the forged and inventive workforce attended the Gala Night time and took part in viewers actions following the premiere screening.
Worldwide Jury Displays International Imaginative and prescient
Members of the Golden Goblet Awards jury met with the media in Shanghai forward of this 12 months’s competition actions, representing filmmakers and trade professionals from world wide.
The seven-member Predominant Competitors jury is chaired by acclaimed actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai and consists of Chinese language director Guan Hu, actress Xin Zhilei, Tunisian producer Dora Bouchoucha, Kyrgyz director Aktan Arym Kubat, Georgian filmmaker Déa Kulumbegashvili and Mexican director Fernanda Valadez.
“It’s a nice honor to function jury president of the twenty eighth Shanghai Worldwide Movie Pageant. Cinema is the artwork of dreaming, and Shanghai is the very vessel on which the Chinese language movie dream set sail. I maintain a number of extra tickets for this voyage—would you want to affix me?” stated Tony Leung Chiu-wai.
The jury’s numerous composition displays SIFF’s longstanding dedication to fostering dialogue amongst filmmakers from totally different cultures and inventive traditions.
A Actually International Stage for Cinema
This 12 months, SIFF obtained roughly 4,100 submissions from 125 nations and areas, setting a brand new document within the competition’s historical past. Amongst almost 3,000 eligible entries, 82 p.c are world or worldwide premieres, underscoring the competition’s rising world affect and enchantment.
Viewers enthusiasm remained robust, with on-line ticket gross sales launching on June 5 and 250,000 tickets bought throughout the first quarter-hour.
Past screenings, SIFF continues to advertise worldwide collaboration by way of initiatives together with SIFF PROJECT, the Worldwide Movie & TV Market, trade boards and masterclasses. The Belt and Highway Movie Pageant Alliance, initiated by SIFF, now consists of 57 member establishments from 50 nations, additional strengthening cooperation amongst movie communities worldwide.
Chen Guo, Managing Director of Shanghai Worldwide Movie & TV Occasions Middle, stated: “Our aim is to make use of the competition platform to assist movies transcend geographic, linguistic and cultural boundaries, encouraging deeper cultural dialogue and inventive alternate amongst filmmakers and audiences from totally different components of the world.”
The Worldwide Movie & TV Market shall be held throughout the competition interval, bringing collectively exhibitors, trade organizations and professionals from world wide to discover new alternatives in content material creation, technological innovation and worldwide cooperation.
For extra info and the total competition schedule, please go to the official SIFF web site at https://www.siff.com/english/
