The Asia Pacific Film Festival opened in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on Saturday after a two-year hiatus due to the financial crisis. Around five-hundred delegations from 17 countries and regions attended the festival.

 

World-renowned filmmaker John Woo received the lifetime achievement award. He extended his gratitude to loyal fans and wished they would continue to support him.

The award for Best Actor went to Hong Kong's Nick Cheung for his polished performance in The Beast Stalker. Cheung says he's more than happy to receive the trophy.

Nick Cheung, actor, said, "I'm really content with the result. I have no more to feel sorry for, for I've joined the cast of such a nice film playing such a nice character over my performing career."

Taiwan French actress Sandrine Pinna was named Best Actress for her performance in Yang Yang. The actress couldn't help yelling out "Yes! Yes!" back stage due to excitement.

Taiwan filmmaker Leon Dai won the Best Director Award for his film No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti, which was a five-time winner at this year's Golden Horse Awards.

Confronting some negative comments on his picture which centers on the father-daughter relationship, Leon had this to say.

Leon Dai, director, said, "We should trust our social system, and we should trust the professionalism of the industry practitioners. Any judgments at this moment could only cause more damages to relevant people. I feel sorry for receiving this award and I want to apologize to the two girls made hurt by the public voice."

After the award presentations it was time for the artists to share their joy and excitement at the parties that followed.