KUCHING, Dec 1: Kuching City will be hosting the 23rd Asian Television Awards (ATA) from Jan 11 to 13 next year at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK).
This extravagant event is organised by the Asian Television Awards Sdn Bhd and is fully supported by the state’s Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports.
According to a press statement from the event’s advisor, Sim Kiang Cheok, 22 countries would carry a live broadcast of the event, which is expected to be watched by about two billion viewers.
State Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah held a coordination meeting on Nov 21 with the organiser and all relevant government departments and agencies to ensure that the event promotes Sarawak successfully.
This event, Sim reckoned, would also be able to give the Visit Sarawak Year promotion a far bigger reach in the Asian market. The celebrities could also learn about the cultures of Sarawak as they would be given opportunities to explore the city.
“Through this event, Sarawak will play host to over 300 international delegates in the film and entertainment industry, which includes the ‘creme de la creme’ of film producers, directors, performers, host talents, judges, nominees, celebrities and key sponsors from the participating countries all over Asia.
“This three-day event will not only present awards to the celebrities but also promote Sarawak globally among the celebrities,” he said.
For the ATA, Sim said 42 categories would be contested to recognise the best performance, programming and production excellence in the Asian television industry.
During the coordination meeting, the committee decided that the host be Teh Choy Wan, Adrian Jalaludin, Mark Zambrano and Teh May Wan.
The most popular awards nominees, according to categories, are as below:
Best Entertainment Presenters and Host: Ray Macdonald, Hu Gua, Varavuth Jentanakul, Panisara Arayaskul.
Best Sports Presenter or Commentator: Carlo Pamintuan, Dominique Boulet, Michael Schiavello.
Best News Presenter or Anchor: Rajdeep Sardesai, Kishore Ajwani, Zakka Jacob.
Best Current Affairs Presenter: Andini Effendi, Aviani Malik, Liu Xin, Eugenio Abunda.
Best Actors in Supporting Role: Jirayu Tantrakul, Louis Scott, Rohit Purohit, Wu Nien Hsuan, Hurbert Wu.
Best Actor in Leading Role: Nadech Kugimiya, Francis Ng, Chang Hsiao-Chuan, Eason Chen, Laksh Lalwani, Peter Ho, Zhang Han, Louis Hesse.
Best Actress in Supporting Role: Fu Hsiao Yun, Maneerat Kumoun, Shiny, Sinjai Plengpanich, Elaine Yiu, Janie Thienphosuvan, Gigi Wong.
Best Actress in Leading Role: Kim Nam Joo, Song Ye Jin, Maylada Susri, Joanne Tseng, Sonija Kwok, Maja Salvador, Yang Chin.
A gala dinner would be held on the first day of the event, while the live show with the red carpet and performance awards presentation will be held on the second day, to be followed by a public concert on Jan 13 — all at the BCCK.
For more details of the nominees, visit www.asiantvawards.com and Asian TV Awards on Facebook, Instagram, Wechat and Twitter for announcement and other updates. — DayakDaily
