The Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival and Taipei Golden Horse Awards () are a film festival and associated awards ceremony held annually in Taiwan. The festival and ceremony were founded in 1962 by the Government Information Office of the Republic of China (ROC) in Taiwan and is now run as an independent organisation. The awards ceremony is usually held in November or December in Taipei, although the event has also been held in other locations in Taiwan in recent times.
Overview Since 1990 (the 27th awards ceremony), the festival has been organized and funded by the Motion Picture Development Foundation R.O.C., which set up the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Executive Committee. The Committee consists of nine to fifteen film scholars and film scholars on the executive board, which includes the Chairman and CEO. Under the Committee, there are five different departments: the administration department for internal administrative affairs, guest hospitality and cross-industry collaboration; the marketing department which is responsible for event planning and promotion, advertising and publications; the project promotion department attending to the execution of the project meetings; the competition department which is in charge of the competition and awards ceremony; and the festival department which is devoted to festival planning, curation of films and invitation of filmmakers, subtitle transition and production and all on-site arrangements during the festival.
The awards ceremony is Taiwan's equivalent to the Academy Awards,. It is one of the four major Chinese-language film awards, along with Hong Kong Film Awards, Golden Rooster Awards and Hundred Flowers Awards, and the only one amongst the four that is Oscar-qualifying. It is considered among the most prestigious film awards in the Chinese-speaking world for decades despite the mainland Chinese boycott in 2019. The awards are contested by Chinese-language submissions from Taiwan, Hong Kong, mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal and Chinese diaspora elsewhere. It is also one of the major annual awards presented in Taiwan along with Golden Bell Awards for television production and Golden Melody Awards for music.
The Golden Horse awards ceremony is held after a month-long festival showcasing some of the nominated feature films for the awards. A substantial number of the film winners in the history of the awards have been Hong Kong productions. The submission period is usually around July to August each year and nominations are announced around October with the ceremony held in November or December. Although it has been held once a year, it was stopped in 1964 and 1974 and boycotted in the after-ceremony in 2018. Winners are selected by a jury of judges and awarded a Golden Horse statuette during the broadcast ceremony.
History In May 1962, the Government Information Office of the Republic of China (ROC) enacted the "Mandarin Film Award Regulation of Year 1962" to officially found the Golden Horse Awards. The name Golden Horse () is a common political term that originates from the islands of Kinmen, Quemoy, or "the Golden Gate" ( ) and Matsu or "the Ancestral Horse"( ), which are under ROC control. The reasons were purely political, as these islands were ROC offshore islands that protected them from the mainland, and were heavily fortified during the Cold War. This was to imply the ROC's sovereignty over territories controlled by the People's Republic of China.
The awards ceremony was established to boost the Chinese-language film industry and to award outstanding Chinese-language films and filmmakers. It intends to introduce excellent films to Taiwanese audience from around the world to stimulate exchange of ideas and inspire creativity.
In 2019, the China Film Administration prohibited mainland Chinese films and filmmakers from participating in the Golden Horse awards, due to political tensions stemming from a Taiwanese filmmaker's award acceptance speech advocating for Taiwan's independence in the previous year. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV cited this incident from the previous year's ceremony as the reason for the ban. Taiwanese filmmaker Ang Lee, who was the Golden Horse Awards Committee's chairman, commented on the situation, highlighting how politics can negatively impact the arts. Subsequently, Hong Kong director Johnnie To resigned as the jury president for the 2019 Golden Horse Awards citing prior film production commitments as the reason for his resignation. However, there have been notable Mainland Chinese and Hong Kong filmmakers competing defying the ban, including Lou Ye and Geng Jun, with Mainland Chinese films winning the top prize in 2023 and 2024 respectively.
Entries and eligibility The awards ceremony pays attention not only to commercial movies but also to artistic films and documentaries. There has been some criticism of this from those who believe that this will not help the Taiwanese commercial movie industry much. However, the awards ceremony plays a significant role in helping the movie industry and drawing more people's attention to Chinese-language movies.
Under current regulations, any film made primarily in the Chinese language is eligible for competition. Since 1996, a liberalization act allows for films from mainland China to enter the Awards. Several awards have been given to mainland Chinese artists and films, including Jiang Wen's In the Heat of the Sun in 1996, Best Actor for Xia Yu in 1996, Joan Chen's Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl in 1999, Best Actress for Qin Hailu in 2001 and Lu Chuan's Kekexili: Mountain Patrol in 2004.
Awards ceremonies CeremonyDateHost(s)LocationBroadcast station1st 31 October 1962 Wang Yun-wu Taipei Guo Guang Cinema 2nd 31 October 1963 — 3rd 30 October 1965 James Shen Taipei Zhongshan Hall 4th 30 October 1966 — 5th 30 October 1967 BCC (Live)6th 30 October 1968 Huang Shao-ku 7th 30 October 1969 Chung Chiao-kuang 8th 30 October 1970 — 9th 30 October 1971 Lo Yun-ping 10th 30 October 1972 — 11th 30 October 1973 12th 30 October 1975 13th 30 October 1976 Ting Mao-shih —14th 30 October 1977 Hsu Ching-chung15th 31 October 1978 Wang Hao, Ivy Ling Po 16th 2 November 1979 Chiang Kuang Chao, Sylvia ChangSun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (Taipei) 17th 3 November 1980 18th 30 October 1981 Li Tao, Josephine SiaoKaohsiung Cultural Center CTS19th 24 October 1982 Terry Hu, Chiang Kuang-chao Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (Taipei) CTV20th 16 November 1983 Sun Yueh, Tien Niu Kaohsiung Cultural Center TTV21st 18 November 1984 Wang Kuan-hsiung, Yao Wei Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (Taipei) CTS22nd 3 November 1985 Sun Yueh, Terry Hu Kaohsiung Cultural Center 23rd 30 November 1986 Chang Hsiao-yen, Eric TsangTaipei Cultural Center 24th 29 October 1987 Chang Hsiao-yen, David Tao CTS25th 5 November 1988 Sylvia Chang, David Tao Taipei Gymnasium TTV26th 9 December 1989 Ba Ge, Yin Shia National Theater and Concert Hall, Taipei CTV27th 10 December 1990 Chang Hsiao-yen, James WongCTS28th 4 December 1991 Raymond Lam, Sibelle HuTTV29th 12 December 1992 Chang Hsiao-yen, Lawrence ChengSun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (Taipei) CTV30th 4 December 1993 Sun Yueh, Fang Fang-fang 31st 10 December 1994 Regina Tsang, Kenny Bee, Chang Shih 32nd 9 December 1995 Chang Hsiao-yen, Sylvia Chang33rd 14 December 1996 Hu Gua, Cally KwongKaohsiung Cultural Center CTS, Star Chinese Movies34th 13 December 1997 Hsui Hao-ping, Sandra NgSun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (Taipei) ETTV35th 12 December 1998Isabel Kao, Jacky WuCTV, Star Chinese Movies36th 12 December 1999Wakin Chau, Matilda TaoTVBS Entertainment Channel37th 2 December 2000 Matilda Tao, Stephen Fung, Nicky Wu Much TV38th 8 December 2001 Kevin Tsai, Isabel Kao Hualien Stadium EBC39th 16 November 2002 Carol Cheng, Kevin Tsai Kaohsiung Cultural Center TVBS Entertainment Channel40th 13 December 2003 Tainan Municipal Cultural Center41st 4 December 2004 Kevin Tsai, Lin Chi-lingZhongshan Hall (Taichung)42nd 13 November 2005 Hu Gua, Patty HouKeelung Cultural Center Azio TV43rd 25 November 2006 Kevin Tsai, Patty Hou Taipei Arena44th 8 December 2007 Pauline Lan, Blackie Chen, Angela Chow Star Chinese Movies, Phoenix Television45th 6 December 2008 Carol Cheng, Blackie Chen Zhongshan Hall (Taichung) Star Chinese Movies46th 28 November 2009 Matilda TaoNew Taipei City Hall Azio TV47th 20 November 2010 Kevin Tsai, Dee Hsu Taoyuan Arts Center TTV48th 26 November 2011 Eric Tsang, Bowie TsangHsinchu Performing Arts Center49th 24 November 2012 Bowie Tsang, Huang Bo Luodong Cultural Factory50th 23 November 2013 Kevin Tsai Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (Taipei)51st 22 November 2014 Mickey Huang, Ella Chen52nd 21 November 2015Mickey Huang, Lin Chi-ling53rd 26 November 2016 Matilda Tao54th 25 November 201755th 17 November 201856th 23 November 2019 57th 21 November 2020 58th 27 November 2021 Austin Lin59th 19 November 2022 Hsieh Ying-xuan60th 25 November 2023 Lulu Huang Lu Zi Yin61st 23 November 2024 Liu Kuan-ting Taipei Music Center62nd 22 November 2025 63rd 22 November 2026 Will Or
Award categories
Current categories +Merit awards English name Mandarin name First awarded Best Narrative Feature 最佳劇情片 1962 Best Documentary Feature 最佳紀錄片 1962 Best Animated Feature 最佳動畫長片 1977 Best Live Action Short Film 最佳劇情短片 1996 Best Documentary Short Film 最佳紀錄短片 2021 Best Animated Short Film 最佳動畫短片 2016 Best Director 最佳導演 1962 Best Leading Actor 最佳男主角 1962 Best Leading Actress 最佳女主角 1962 Best Supporting Actor 最佳男配角 1962 Best Supporting Actress 最佳女配角 1962 Best New Director 最佳新導演 2010 Best New Performer 最佳新演員 2000 Best Original Screenplay 最佳原著劇本 1962 Best Adapted Screenplay 最佳改編劇本 1962 Best Cinematography 最佳攝影 1962 Best Visual Effects 最佳視覺效果 1995Best Art Direction 最佳美術設計 1965 Best Makeup & Costume Design 最佳造型設計 1981 Best Action Choreography 最佳動作設計 1992 Best Original Film Score 最佳原創電影音樂 1962 Best Original Film Song 最佳原創電影歌曲 1979 Best Film Editing 最佳剪輯 1962 Best Sound Effects 最佳音效 1962
+Special awards English name Mandarin name First awarded Outstanding Taiwanese Filmmaker of the Year 年度台灣傑出電影工作者 1997 Lifetime Achievement Award 終身成就獎 1993
+External awards English name Mandarin name First awarded Audience Choice Award 觀眾票選最佳影片 1992 FIPRESCI Prize 國際影評人費比西獎 2007 NETPAC Award 亞洲電影促進聯盟奈派克獎 2007 Observation Missions for Asian Cinema Award 亞洲電影觀察團推薦獎 2015
Discontinued categories English name Mandarin name First awarded Last awarded Outstanding Taiwanese Film of the Year 年度台灣傑出電影 1997 2010 Best Director (Documentary) 最佳紀錄片導演 1986 1988 Best Planning (Documentary) 最佳紀錄片策劃 1962 1980 Best Cinematography (Documentary) 最佳紀錄片攝影 1962 1980 Best News Film 最佳新聞片 1968 1970 Best Directing (News Film) 最佳新聞片編導 1968 1969 Best Cinematography (News Film) 最佳新聞片攝影 1968 1969 Best Direction (Animation) 最佳卡通片編導 1977 1980 Best Child Star 最佳童星 1962 1984 Piaget Award for Best Original Screenplay 伯爵年度優秀獎 2013 2017
Hosts For the first fourteen award ceremonies, there were no regular hosts for the ceremony. Hosts began since the fifteenth ceremony; that year's hosts were Ivy Ling Po and Wang Hao. Since then, there are usually two hosts every year, sometimes with a combination of one host from Hong Kong and the other from Taiwan. A significant number of celebrities have hosted the ceremony, such as Jackie Chan, Eric Tsang, Kevin Tsai and Dee Hsu. In 2012 (the 49th awards ceremony), Bowie Tsang and Huang Bo were the hosts and Huang Bo became the first host from Mainland China in the history of the Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards.
Records In 1972, martial artist and actor Bruce Lee won the Special Jury Award, Fist of Fury. Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai has won the most Best Leading Actor awards. He won this award at the 31st, 40th and 44th awards ceremony with Chungking Express, Infernal Affairs, and Lust, Caution. He also holds the record for actor with most nominations in the Best Actor category with 7 times.