“The Sunny Side of the Street,” directed by Malaysian director Liu Guorui, who is residing in Hong Kong, illustrates the challenges faced by migrants via the lens of his own immigration experience. Veteran Hong Kong actor Anthony Wong, up-and-coming performer Zhou Guoxian, and newcomer Lin Nuo (Sahal Zaman) all-star in the movie. Before the movie came out, “The Sunny Side of the Street” won Wong the Golden Horse Award for Best Actor, and it has since helped 10-year-old Lin Nuo win the Hong Kong Film Awards’ Best New Actor prize. Despite not winning the Best New Director prize, Liu stated in a Malaysian media interview, “I won’t be disappointed!”
“The Sunny Side of the Street” received four nominations at the 41st Hong Kong Film Awards, including Best Actor, Best New Director, Best New Actor, and Best Original Screenplay.
Even though this is Lin Nuo’s debut feature, he has already received accolades for Best New Actor from the Hong Kong Film Directors’ Guild and the inaugural Hong Kong Network Film Critics HIGHLIGHT Awards.
Liu expressed his happiness at Lin Nuo’s most recent victory: “I am really glad that he won. I trained him after we met at a community center. On set, I watched him develop little by little into an actor. I am really proud of him for walking confidently onto the Hong Kong Film Awards stage today.
He Juetian won the Best New Director prize this year for “The Justice of Lau,” and when asked if he was sad about not winning, Liu responded, “No, the competition among new directors in Hong Kong this year was particularly fierce. I believe that just getting nominated is a significant validation. I won an award at the Golden Horse Awards along with Anthony Wong, and Lin Nuo won at the Hong Kong Film Awards. Everyone has received an acknowledgment, and we are grateful for that.
With a sincere representation of “father-son relationships,” “The Sunny Side of the Street” shows the struggles that “refugees in Hong Kong” go through. Anthony Wong’s performance helped the movie win awards at both the Golden Horse Awards and the Hong Kong Film Awards. Liu responded that he was unsure about the movie’s release date in Malaysia and stated, “I haven’t heard about any distributors picking it up yet, so we may have to wait for the film company to announce more details.”
