The 28th Shanghai International Film Festival launched Saturday at the city’s Grand Theatre, drawing a constellation of Chinese-language stars to its opening red carpet and centering its ceremony on cinema’s human core rather than the geopolitical flash that has marked other festivals this year.
Tony Leung Chiu-wai, who serves as jury president of the Golden Goblet competition, appeared on the red carpet alongside his wife Carina Lau and fellow jurors Dora Bouchoucha, Guan Hu, Aktan Arym Kubat, Déa Kulumbegashvili, Fernanda Valadez, and Xin Zhilei.
“I have acted in many movies and played many different roles, but cinema remains just as fascinating to me,” Leung said. “Through different characters, experiencing different lives and different stories.”
The ceremony’s standout moment came with the Lifetime Achievement Award presentation to Lisa Lu, the “Crazy Rich Asians” actor who has already passed her 100th birthday by the Chinese calendar. She was introduced by fellow cinema legend Joan Chen, who recalled how Lu had gifted her dresses for red carpet appearances when Chen was first breaking into Hollywood. Lu arrived flanked by director Sherwood Hu and her two daughters, Lucia Hwong and Lorette Hwong.
