THE 3rd Pingyao International Film Festival (PYIFF) has handed its main Roberto Rossellini awards to Brazilian director Maya Da-Rin’s “The Fever,” a film that follows the plight of an “urban indigenous” worker, and to Guatemalan director Cesar Diaz, who traveled to Pingyao, Shanxi, with his civil war drama “Our Mothers.” Da-Rin thanked the festival for reaching out to films from the other side of the world and said the experience of making the “The Fever” had been life changing. “For me it is a great honor,” she said, upon taking the prize for best film. “This film has been made through seven years of a lot of work of a lot of people. People who give their lives to cinema and believe that through cinema we can think about our world and we can talk about the world in which we live.” “The Fever” had previously won two prizes at Locarno, including the nod for best actor for Regis Myrupu. Diaz won the best director prize for a film which has screened to sold-out audiences in Pingyao and had earlier picked up two awards — including the Golden Camera — at Cannes. The jury award went to Chinese director Liang Ming’s coming-of-age drama “Wisdom Tooth.” Pingyao’s Roberto Rossellini awards were selected from a field of 10 international films screening under its Crouching Tigers program. The festival also hands out the Fei Mu Awards, taken from Chinese-language films by first- or second-time directors and screened in either the Crouching Tigers or the Hidden Dragons programs. Singaporean director Anthony Chen’s fraught drama-romance “Wet Season” picked up best film and best actress for Yeo Yann-yann. Best director went to “Wisdom Tooth”’s Liang, while best actor went to Wang Xuebing for his turn as an actor down on his luck in Ju Anqi’s dark comedy “A Trophy on the Sea.” Ju provided a touching moment when given a special mention prize by the jury by saying the recognition would ensure he stuck “to my way of creating.” The 10-day Pingyao festival is the brainchild of Chinese auteur Jia Zhangke — an international festival favorite noted for his socially edged dramas “The World” and “A Touch of Sin” — and veteran festival head Marco Muller, who serves here as artistic director. Hong Kong producer Nansun Shi was handed the International Contribution to Chinese Cinema Award for her continued contribution to Chinese-language film. Shi was behind the rise of both the Cinema City and Film Workshop in Hong Kong and has produced a string of blockbusters, including “The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate 3D.” The festival had earlier handed its Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon East-West Award — for the development of film culture — to the veteran Chinese helmer Zhang Yimou, who also hosted a master class while in Pingyao. Zhang’s master class had to be moved to a bigger outdoor venue due to demand. Master classes were also presented by Japan’s Takashi Shimizu, Brazil’s Kleber Mendonca Filho and Chinese veteran filmmaker Xie Fei. PYIFF opened on Oct. 10 with the Chinese installment of BRICS co-production “Neighbors,” directed by Han Yan, playing as the opening film. The festival wraps on Oct. 19 with closing film “The Opera House,” directed by Jacob Cheung. | 