Best Asian Film Grand Jury

Russell Crowe is an Oscar® winner who is regarded as one of the finest actors of our time. Crowe’s many acting honours include three consecutive Best Actor Oscar® nominations: for his work in the acclaimed 1999 drama THE INSIDER; the 2000 Best Picture winner, GLADIATOR, for which he took home the Oscar®; and 2001’s Best Picture, A BEAUTIFUL MIND.

In addition to the Oscar®, Crowe’s performance as Maximus in Ridley Scott’s GLADIATOR earned him Best Actor honours from several critics’ organisations, including the Broadcast Film Critics and London Film Critics Circle. He also received Golden Globe, BAFTA Award and Screen Actors Guild Award® nominations.

The year prior, Crowe had gained his first Oscar® nomination for his portrayal of tobacco company whistle-blower Jeffrey Wigand in Michael Mann’s THE INSIDER. He was also named Best Actor by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, Broadcast Film Critics Association, National Society of Film Critics and National Board of Review, and garnered Golden Globe, BAFTA Award and SAG Award® nominations.

Crowe’s masterful portrayal of Nobel Prize winner John Forbes Nash Jr. in Ron Howard’s A BEAUTIFUL MIND brought him his third Oscar® nomination, as well as his third consecutive Critics’ Choice Award from the Broadcast Film Critics Association. He also won Golden Globe, BAFTA and SAG® Awards, and several other critics groups’ Best Actor Awards.

Reuniting with Howard in 2005, Crowe earned Golden Globe and SAG Award® nominations, and won an Australian Film Institute (AFI) Award, for his portrayal of Jim Braddock in CINDERELLA MAN.

In 2015, Crowe made his directorial debut on the sweeping epic THE WATER DIVINER, in which he also starred. The film won three AACTA Awards, including Best Picture.

Born in New Zealand, Crowe was raised in Australia, where he was first honoured for his work on the big screen and began gaining international attention. He was recognised for three consecutive years by the AFI, starting in 1990, when he was nominated for Best Actor for THE CROSSING. In 1991, he won the AFI Award for Best Supporting Actor Award for PROOF. The following year, he received Best Actor Awards from the AFI and the Australian Film Critics for his performance in ROMPER STOMPER. Additionally, the 1993 Seattle International Film Festival named him Best Actor for his work in both ROMPER STOMPER and HAMMERS OVER THE ANVIL.

Crowe made his American film debut in 1995 in Sam Raimi’s Western THE QUICK AND THE DEAD. He went on to earn acclaim for his role in Curtis Hanson’s crime drama LA CONFIDENTIAL.

He has since starred in a long and diverse list of films, including the Ridley Scott-directed projects A GOOD YEAR, AMERICAN GANGSTER, BODY OF LIES and ROBIN HOOD. Among his other credits are MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD, for which Crowe earned a Golden Globe nomination; THE NICE GUYS; PROOF OF LIFE; 3:10 TO YUMA; STATE OF PLAY; THE NEXT THREE DAYS; THE MAN WITH THE IRON FISTS; NOAH; FATHERS & DAUGHTER’S; WINTER’S TALE; MAN OF STEEL; THE MUMMY; LES MISERABLES; and BROKEN CITY. He is currently starring alongside fellow Australian Oscar® winner Nicole Kidman in Joel Edgerton’s BOY ERASED.

Paul Currie is a founding shareholder of Lightstream Pictures. His directing and producing work spans commercials, TV series, feature films and the staging of large live events. Paul directed and produced ONE PERFECT DAY, for which he was awarded Best Debut Director from the Screen Directors Association of Australia. Early in his career, Paul also produced the Australian action feature UNDER THE GUN, and co-authored the best-selling book A Hero’s Journey (forwarded by Bryce Courtney, author of The Power of One). Paul directed the acclaimed documentaries LIONHEART – THE JESSE MARTIN STORY and EVERY HEART BEATS TRUE: THE JIM STYNES STORY. He also served as Creative Director for World Reconciliation Day, a live and multi-camera broadcast event that featured Nelson Mandela and Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter. Paul was nominated as Australian of the Year for co-founding a charity organisation called Reach Youth, which has affected the lives of over 500,000 young Australians. 

Paul directed the ABC TV series TWENTY-SOMETHING and executive produced the cop thriller RAMPART (written by James Ellroy and starring Woody Harrelson, Sigourney Weaver and Robin Wright) and MAX ROSE (starring Jerry Lewis). He produced the fantasy adventure film THE KING’S DAUGHTER with Bill Mechanic staring Pierce Brosnan and William Hurt, as well as co-producing DAVID ATTENBOROUGH’S GREAT BARRIER REEF documentary.

His recent projects include directing and producing psychological thriller 2:22 (starring Michiel Huisman and Teresa Palmer in the lead roles), and again collaborating with Bill Mechanic to produce Mel Gibson’s Oscar® and AACTA Award-winning HACKSAW RIDGE (starring Andrew Garfield, Vince Vaughn and Sam Worthington). He also produced the large budget Chinese film BLEEDING STEEL, filmed in Australia and starring Jackie Chan, and the Chinese/Australian co-production THE LONGEST SHOT.  Paul also recently completed directing the live action opening and ending of THE LEGO® NINJAGO MOVIE, which also stars Jackie Chan.

Renny Harlin has established himself in Hollywood as a filmmaker with the ability to identify and develop a wide range of material. His credits span multiple genres and include both action-oriented blockbusters and critically acclaimed dramas. Harlin's films have generated well over a billion dollars at the box office in the theatrical market alone. He is globally known for directing the box office smash DIE HARD 2: DIE HARDER starring Bruce Willis. Harlin also directed and produced the blockbuster CLIFFHANGER. The action thriller starred Sylvester Stallone and helped establish Harlin as one of Hollywood’s premiere action directors.

He has recently completed LEGEND OF THE ANCIENT SWORD for Alibaba Pictures which released October 1st, 2018 during Golden Week holidays across China. The movie is based on one of the most popular video games in China, and stars Wang Lihong, Song Qian, Gao Yixiang and Wu Qianyu. This action-adventure epic takes the audience on a magical journey in an imaginary ancient China.

At the same time, Harlin is also in post-production on BODIES AT REST. It is an action thriller taking place in present day Hong Kong. It’s a tightly knit, contained story. Most of the movie takes place inside one building – a morgue – apart from a few exterior scenes shot in Hong Kong. The movie is a Wanda Pictures production, co-produced by Media Asia company. The main cast includes Nick Cheung and Yang Zi, playing the protagonists, and Richie Jen, Feng Jiayi, and Carlos Chan playing antagonists.

Harlin’s first film in China was SKIPTRACE for Talent International Co., an action-comedy starring action legend Jackie Chan, superstar Fan BingBing and Johnny Knoxville, known to millions for his antics in the JACKASS franchise. Their journey takes them across the diverse landscapes of Mongolia, southern China, Hong Kong and Macau. The film was a smash hit in China, generating 900 million RMB at the box office in August 2016.

Based in Japan, Adam Torel is a British producer and distributor of Japanese and South Korean films. Torel founded independent distribution company Third Window Films in 2005 which has since released around 90 films in the UK, often working with directors such as Sion Sono, Lee Chang-Dong, Shinya Tsukamoto, Miki Satoshi and Venice Film Festival Golden Lion Award-winner Takeshi Kitano.

 In 2012, Third Window Films launched a production arm, and have since produced Sion Sono’s THE LAND OF HOPE, Yosuke Fujita’s FUKUCHAN OF FUKUFUKU FLATS, Tezuka’s Barbara and two films from Eiji Uchida, LOWLIFE LOVE and LOVE AND OTHER CULTS.

Anurag Kashyap is an award-winning Indian director, producer and writer known for his works in Hindi cinema. His screenwriting debut crime-drama SATYA which was both a critical and commercial success, winning five Film fare Awards. 

Extending his expertise to directing, he wrote BLACK FRIDAY based on the 1993 Bombay bombings, mystery-thriller NO SMOKING and THE GIRL IN THE YELLOW BOOTS followed by Cannes nominees UGLY, GANGS OF WASSEYPUR and UDAAN which received seven Filmfare Awards in 2011. 

His commitment to produce unconventional works led him to establish Anurag Kashyap Films Pvt. Ltd. (AKFPL) which produced THE LUNCHBOX (DABBA) and won the Grand Golden Rail Award at Cannes Film Festival in 2013 and received a BAFTA nomination in 2015.

Virginia Lok is a highly respected film and television producer from Hong Hong. Her extensive list of credits include LINE WALKER, LINE WALKER 2: INVISIBLE SPY, FEI DAO YOU JIAN FEI DAO, TURNING POINT and SHED SKIN PAPA, which was nominated for Best Film at the 2016 Tokyo International Film Festival. Having also produced multiple family movies including PORO, THE RACING ADVENTURE, Lok’s diverse slate also includes the acclaimed action-adventure series FLYING TIGER.

Chloe Maayan is an award-winning Chinese Actress, best known for her leading role in THREE HUSBANDS which earned her the awards for Best Leading Actress at the Hong Kong Film Awards and the Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards, and nominations for Best Leading Actress at the Asian Film Awards and the 2018 Golden Horse Awards, Taiwan’s most prestigious screen accolade. 

Also credited as Zeng Meihuizi, Maayan is also known for her work in BITTER FLOWERS, LONG DAYS JOURNEY IN TO NIGHT and most recently THE PLUTO MOMENT for which she was nominated for Best Actress at the China Film Director’s Guild Awards.

Tannishtha Chatterjee is a world-recognised Indian film actress and director. Her breakthrough role was in BRICK LANE alongside Judi Dench and Anne Hathaway, which she received a British Independent Film Award nomination for. Chatterjee has also starred in Academy Award winning film ANNA KARENINA, UNINDIAN and LION. Her role in PARCHED won her awards from the Indian Festival of Los Angeles, Stockholm Film Festival and Jaipur International Film Festival. In 2013, she also won the prestigious National Film Award for DEKH INDIAN CIRCUS.

Chatterjee also made her directorial debut in 2019 with ROAM ROME MEIN, which premiered at the Busan International Film Festival and has already been selected to screen at Rome Film Festival.