THE winners of the 36th China Golden Rooster Awards were announced at the closing of the Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival in Xiamen, Fujian Province, on Saturday.

Chinese director Wuershan’s epic film “Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms” emerged as a major winner with three awards: Best Picture, Best Cinematography and Best Supporting Actor.

The director said the movie, the first installment of a trilogy adapted from a Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) novel, had already taken him and his fellow creators 10 years, and they have recruited around 10,000 crew members for the project. Expressing his gratitude to all those dedicated to the epic, the Inner Mongolian director said they will continue to work hard to finish the sequels.

Hong Kong superstar Tony Leung Chiu-wai, nominated for the first time by Golden Rooster, won the Best Actor award for playing a patriotic agent in the espionage thriller “Hidden Blade,” a twists-studded tale set during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.

Leung said he enjoys being an actor because it has enriched his life, and he believes he would never be able to experience so many different lives and portray so many roles if he were not involved in acting. “Each character also teaches me new things and life lessons,” he added.

Yueju opera-themed movie “Off the Stage” earned He Saifei the Best Actress award, while “The Wander Earth II,” the sequel to China’s highest-grossing sci-fi film, received the Special Jury award and Best Sound award.

Veteran actor Li Xuejian was honored with the Best Supporting Actor award for his portrayal of Ji Chang, a kind-hearted feudal lord, in “Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms.” Li previously won the Golden Rooster’s best actor in 1991 for the movie “Jiao Yulu.”

Huang Miyi won the Best Supporting Actress award for her role in “Ripples of Life,” a noir comedy about how a film fails to be shot in a town due to the disagreement between the director and scriptwriter over the script.

“Chang An,” an epic chronicling the lifelong friendship of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) poets Li Bai and Gao Shi, won the Best Animated Film award. Song Yiyi, the producer, said they hope that through this film, more audiences can come to understand the lives and stories of some of the most renowned poets in China’s literary history. (China Daily)