The 9th Silk Road International Film Festival ended on 3 January in Xi’an, Shaanxi, with the winners of the Golden Silk Road Awards being announced at the closing ceremony.

The five-day event was co-hosted by China Media Group and the provincial governments of Shaanxi and Fujian, CGTN reports.

This year’s competition attracted 1,598 films from 90 countries and regions.

The film ‘Close’, a co-production between Belgium, the Netherlands and France, was the biggest winner, winning Best Film and Best Director.

A film about the friendship between two boys, ‘Close’ premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2022.

Best Actor and Actress went to Pål Sverre Hagen from Norway and Essie Davis from Australia respectively.

See the list of winners here.