Guria takes Best Film at Gold Coast screen awards

Georgian filmmaker Levan Koguashvili's Guria won Best Film at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards, held on Friday, October 30, 2026, at The Star on the Gold Coast. Koguashvili shared the award with producers Olena Yershova and Boris Frumin, according to the Asia Pacific Screen Academy.

The film is an international co-production spanning Georgia, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Bulgaria, Türkiye, Norway and Saudi Arabia. It is a comedy set in a village in western Georgia in the early 1990s, following a hazelnut farmer short of money and looking for love, and it premiered in the Venice Film Festival's Venice Spotlight section, according to festival listings reported in coverage of the awards.

The ceremony recognised 36 nominated films representing 32 countries and regions. The awards, presented by the Asia Pacific Screen Academy, honour filmmaking from across the region, and this year's field ranged from large co-productions to small independent features.

Top honours beyond Best Film

Thailand's Sompot Chidgasornpongse was named Best Director for 9 Temples to Heaven, a production involving eight countries and territories. Myanmar filmmaker Aung Phyoe received a Special Mention for Best Director for Fruit Gathering. Afghan filmmaker Shahrbanoo Sadat received the Jury Grand Prize for No Good Men, a Germany-France-Norway-Denmark-Afghanistan co-production that was among the films nominated for Best Film.

In the performance categories, Nepalese actor Pushpa Thing Lama won Best Performance for Elephants in the Fog, while South Korea's Sim Su-bin was named Best New Performer for The World Before. The Best Screenplay award went to Rakan Mayasi, Wahid Ajmi and Pôl Seif for Yesterday the Eye Didn't Sleep, an international collaboration involving Belgium, Lebanon, Palestine, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Vietnamese cinematographer Nguyễn Vinh Phúc received Best Cinematography for Hearing. The Cultural Diversity Award went to Another Birth, directed and produced by Isabelle Kalandar. New Zealand filmmaker Paloma Schneideman won Best Youth Film for Big Girls Don't Cry, with producers Vicky Pope and Thomas Coppell also recognised, while Best Animated Film went to The Violinist, directed by Ervin Han and Raúl García. The Best Documentary Film award was presented to Itab Azzam and Jack MacInness for One in a Million, a United Kingdom-United States co-production about the experiences of a Syrian refugee.

Career honour and development funding

Indian producer Bobby Bedi received the FIAPF Award for Outstanding Contribution to Film in the Asia Pacific, recognising a career that helped bring Indian cinema to international audiences. His producing credits include Bandit Queen and Fire, two films that challenged conventions and attracted international attention. FIAPF president Luis Alberto Scalella said: "Bobby Bedi's career embodies the ambition, the independent and creative vision that this award celebrates."

The ceremony also announced the recipients of the MPA APSA Academy Film Fund, supported by the Motion Picture Association. Each project receives ten thousand dollars in development funding. Among the recipients was Indian director Payal Kapadia, whose project A Memory of Being Here, produced by Thomas Hakim, received support. Cambodian-French director Davy Chou and producer Charlotte Vincent were awarded funding for My Father's Glory, while Chinese director Taifeng Liu and producer Janet Wu received support for A Place in the Sun.

Director Nicole Midori Woodford and producer Anthony Chen were recognised for Incarnation, a Singapore-Japan co-production. The remaining grant went to director Zhanana Kurmasheva and producer Banu Ramazanova for the documentary The Story of My Shirt, involving Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, China and Chile. Three of the funded projects are directed by women. The fund previously backed 9 Temples to Heaven at development stage before its Best Director win, the Academy said.

Malaysian filmmaker Haziqah Azemi received the Forum Filmmaker Award, presented in partnership with The Post Lounge Group, for her project Garek. The film explores the experiences of a woman facing religious persecution following a pregnancy outside marriage. Azemi previously took part in the Griffith Film School and APSA Regional Reels program and developed the project under the mentorship of APSA Academy member Yulia Evina Bahara.

A network across the region

Asia Pacific Screen Awards chair Tracey Vieira said the winners showed the strength of filmmaking across the region, praising their courage, creativity and cultural richness. She said the winning films, from Guria and No Good Men to Elephants in the Fog, showed the "extraordinary stories" emerging from the region and the importance of creating opportunities for those voices to be recognised internationally.

Screen Queensland CEO Jacqui Feeney said the awards and the accompanying Asia Pacific Screen Forum gave Queensland filmmakers chances to connect with international peers, strengthen industry relationships and explore new pathways for their projects. The Asia Pacific Screen Academy, presided over by Australian actor Jack Thompson AM, now comprises more than 1,816 members from 84 countries and areas. All nominees, nomination council members and jury members are inducted into the Academy, creating an international network of filmmakers and screen industry professionals.

The full winners list was published by the Academy, and reported by The Hollywood Reporter Australia and the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. More film and arts coverage can be found in GenZ NewZ's culture section and on the GenZ NewZ homepage.