Gong Li (left) and Zhang Ziyi have been nominated for the Best Actress Award in the first Asian Film Awards, to be held on March 20th in Hong Kong.

Chinese mainland actresses Gong Li and Zhang Ziyi will compete for the Best Actress Award in the first Asian Film Awards, to be held on March 20th in Hong Kong.

Gong Li has been nominated for her performance in Curse of the Golden Flower, which has already helped her win the Best Actress Award of the 13th Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards.

Zhang Ziyi was nominated for The Banquet.

Other nominees for the Best Actress Award include South Korean actresses Kim Hye-su and Lim Soo-Jung, as well as Japanese actresses Rie Miyazawa and Miki Nakatani.

Besides the hot competition for the Best Actress Award, the rivals for the Best Actor Award are also big names, including Hong Kong actor Andy Lau, Taiwan actor Chen Chang, South Korean actor/singer Rain, and Indian Bollywood star Shahrukh Khan.

The first Asian Film Awards, organized by the Hong Kong International Film Festival, will be held at the opening ceremony of the Entertainment Expo Hong Kong 2007. The 17 people on the selection committee will choose nominees from more than 700 Asian movies released since 2006.

(CRIENGLISH.com January 31, 2007)