Romance drama "Soul Mate" has charmed the Hong Kong Film Awards.
The coming-of-age tale of two girls falling for the same boy received 12 nominations, with Zhou Dongyu and Ma Sichun both getting nods in the best actress category. Their dual nominations are not unprecedented – the co-stars both won the category at Taiwan's Golden Horse Awards last year.
The film, its screenplay and director Derek Tsang also received nominations, which were announced Tuesday by two of last year's winners, "Port of Call" co-stars Aaron Kwok and Elaine Jin.
Trailing closely with 10 nominations is the cop thriller "Cold War II," nominated as best film, screenplay, cinematography and best actor, Tony Leung Ka Fai.
In the best film category, both films will compete alongside the comedy "Mermaid," the baseball film "Weeds on Fire" and crime thriller "Trivisa."
The best directory category is a battle between veterans and new talent. Three-time winner Johnnie To is nominated for crime drama "Three" while 2002's best actor and director winner Stephen Chow is nominated for "Mermaid." Director Derek Tsang from "Soul Mate," Wong Chun from "Mad World" and Frank Hui, Jevons Au and Vicky Wong from "Trivisa" are all just beginning to make their mark in film direction.
In the best actress category, Zhou and Ma face competition from Tang Wei for "Book of Love," Kara Wai in "Happiness" and Nina Paw from "Show Me Your Love."
Leung is joined in the best actor category by Francis Ng in "Shed Skin Papa," Shawn Yue in "Mad World" and "Trivisa" co-stars Richie Jen and Lam Ka Tung.
Kwok expressed pride in Leung's performance, even though he wasn't nominated for his own role in "Cold War II."
"I never doubt myself, but I think the jury members have their point of views, their preferences and angles," he said at the news conference. "It's not a problem that I'm not nominated. I'm still very confident in myself."
The Hong Kong Film Awards ceremony is on April 9.
Sean “Diddy” Combs seeks bail, citing changed circumstances and new evidence
Sean "Diddy" Combs filed a new request for bail on Friday, saying changed circumstances, along with new evidence, mean the hip-hop mogul should be allowed to prepare for a May trial from outside jail.
Lawyers for Combs filed the request in Manhattan federal court, where his previous requests for bail have been rejected by two judges since his September arrest on racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges.
He has pleaded not guilty to charges that he coerced and abused women for years with help from a network of associates and employees, while silencing victims through blackmail and violence, including kidnapping, arson and physical beatings.
He has been awaiting a May 5 trial at a federal detention facility in Brooklyn.
In their new court filing, lawyers for Combs say they are proposing a "far more robust" bail package that would subject the entertainer to strict around-the-clock security monitoring and near-total restrictions on his ability to contact anyone but his lawyers. But the amount of money they attach to the package remains $50 million, as they proposed before.
They also cite new evidence that they say "makes clear that the government's case is thin." That evidence, the lawyers said, refutes the government's claim that a March 2016 video showing Combs physically assaulting his then-girlfriend occurred during a coerced "freak off," a sexually driven event described in the indictment against Combs.
They wrote that the encounter was instead "a minutes-long glimpse into a complex but decade-long consensual relationship" between Combs and his then-girlfriend.
The lawyers argued that the jail conditions Combs is experiencing at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn violate his constitutional... Read More