Going by the shortlist newly released by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), the more ethnically diverse roster of Academy member-voters has not yet translated to greater welcome for Chinese films, or for that matter, Asian films, with the exception of South Korea's Parasite.
Being nominated for Best International Feature Film, Parasite is the only Asian film that has survived from the competition this year.
There were high hopes for a Best Picture nod for The Farewell, a US production shot in Mandarin and English and directed by Lulu Wang. It had attracted exceptional critical acclaim and box office success elsewhere, grossing almost 20 million dollars in US theaters.
The online ranking site Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a rare 99 percent rating, saying that it "deftly captured complicated family dynamics with a poignant, well-acted drama that marries cultural specificity with universally relatable themes."
The Farewell has won the American Film Institute's prestigious Movie of the Year Award and Sundance London's Audience Award, among many others, and it is still in contention for multiple awards from the Hollywood Critics Association, the Independent Spirit Awards, and in the Golden Globes Best Foreign Language and Best Actress categories.
"Foreign language titles, including Asian films, mostly gain attention and attraction from big film festivals. Parasite and last year's Shoplifters from Japan were both Palme d'Or winners at Cannes," SK Global's Xian Li told Xinhua in a recent interview. "It's no surprise people are becoming more aware of them."
None of the three Chinese-language movies that would qualify for a Best International Feature Film got a nod this year.
