Four Indian films - "Goopi Gawaiya Bagha Bajaiya", "Monsoon Shootout", "The Lunchbox" and "Menstrual Man" have been nominated in various categories of the seventh edition of Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA).
The nominations were announced here Tuesday by Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk.
Ritesh Batra's "The Lunchbox" has been nominated in the best screenplay category while "Goopi Gawaiya Bagha Bajaiya", produced by Children's Film Society, India, has been nominated in the best animated feature film section.
Rajeev Ravi's "Monsoon Shootout" stands a chance to win in the achievement in cinematography category and "Menstrual Man" by Amit Virmani and Seah Kui Luan in the best documentary feature film section.
For the first time, films from Bangladesh, Jordan and Saudi Arabia have also been nominated for APSA.
The six films that will compete for the best feature film award are "Omar" (Palestine), "Le Passe" (The Past, France, Italy), "Soshite Chichi Ni Naru" (Like Father, Like Son, Japan), Bangladesh's first APSA nomination "Television", anthology film "The Turning" (Australia) and "With You, Without You" (Sri Lanka).
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The awards ceremony will be held here Dec 12.
The awards, supported by Brisbane City Council and managed by economic development board Brisbane Marketing in collaboration with Paris-based UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) and FIAPF-International Federation of Film Producers Associations, recognise and promote cinematic excellence and cultural diversity of the film region.
"Omar" has received the most nominations of any film, with a total of three for best performance by an actor (Adam Bakri), achievement in cinematography (Ehab Assal) and best feature film (Hany Abu-Assad, Waleed F. Zuaiter, David Gerson).
"It is my absolute pleasure to see the 2013 nominations encompass more Asia Pacific countries and areas than ever before, making this year the most international event in APSA's proud history," Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said in a statement.
Michael Hawkins, APSA chairman said: "To see among the nominees first time feature filmmakers who are competing with some of the most established and renowned filmmakers in the region, and indeed the world, means the international jury has a hard task ahead of them."
Nominated alongside director Hirokazu Kore-eda for "Soshite Chichi Ni Naru" and Hiner Saleem for "My Sweet Pepperland" in the best director category are Shahram Mokhri for "Mahi Va Gorbeh", Anthony Chen for "Ilo, Ilo" and Emir Baigazin for "Uroki Garmonii".
In the best actress category, Iran's Golshifteh Farahani for "My Sweet Pepperland" and Negar Javaherian for "The Painting Pool" are nominated along with Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi ("The Grandmaster"), New Zealand's Whirimako Black for "Tuakiri Huna" and Kurdish actress Ayça Damgaci for "Yozgat Blues".
Winners in the feature film categories will be determined by the 2013 APSA international jury, headed by Indian screenwriter and director Shyam Benegal. The jury members include Korean screenwriter and director Kim Tae-yong, Sri Lankan actress Malani Fonseka, Turkish actor Tamer Levent, Swiss director Christoph Schaub and Hong Kong producer Albert Lee.
The international jury can also present a further prize: the Jury Grand Prize, for which nominated narrative feature films are eligible.
Two additional awards for outstanding achievement will be presented at the ceremony.
The APSA NETPAC (Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema) Development Prize of US$10,000 will also be awarded to a first or second time feature filmmaker. The emerging talent prize is supported by APSA and the Griffith Film School, Griffith University.