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| Tiantan Awards 2026 Winners: UK Film Dragonfly Sweeps Beijing as Yu Hewei and Qiao Shan Deliver China’s Big Home Wins. (Credits: BIFF) |
The 16th Beijing International Film Festival closed on 25 April with the Tiantan Awards 2026 finally naming its winners, and there was one clear headline by the end of the night: British drama Dragonfly, also known as The Nest, walked in as a contender and walked out like it owned the carpet.
The film claimed Best Film, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay, which is awards-season language for “everyone else, thanks for coming”.
The UK production became the biggest winner of the festival thanks to its emotionally layered story about two women from very different backgrounds who slowly learn to trust one another through a series of difficult and intimate moments.
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It is the sort of human drama that can either move a room to tears or make viewers stare silently at the credits pretending they are fine. Clearly, the judges were impressed.
Winning Best Screenplay, writer Paul Andrew Williams received further recognition for shaping a story praised for its emotional precision and quiet power. In an era where many films confuse noise with depth, Dragonfly appears to have reminded people that careful writing still matters.
The Best Actress prize was jointly awarded to Andrea Riseborough and Brenda Blethyn, a pairing that instantly gave the ceremony extra prestige.
Two powerhouse performers sharing one trophy feels less like a compromise and more like the judges refusing to choose between excellence. Fair enough.
China, however, was never going to leave its own capital empty-handed.
Local film All The Good Eyes, also known as Shen Zhong You Lin, delivered two major acting victories with Yu Hewei winning Best Actor and Qiao Shan taking Best Supporting Actor.
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| Yu Hewei |
That gave domestic audiences plenty to cheer, and probably saved social media from complete chaos.
During his acceptance speech, Yu Hewei thanked the jury and collaborators, saying he deeply loved the story because it felt personal.
He explained the film is connected to Shenyang, his hometown, and spoke warmly about the people there as stubborn, sincere, occasionally rough around the edges, yet full of love.
It was one of the night’s more heartfelt moments, proving that authenticity still lands harder than polished clichés.
Meanwhile, Qiao Shan delivered a more playful response, saying the win came so suddenly that standing alone on stage in front of so many artists and personal idols felt thrilling.
He joked that now he understood why so many people want trophies.
After twenty years acting, and building a reputation in comedy, his win carried extra weight. Funny people often get overlooked until they suddenly don’t.
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| Qiao Shan |
Elsewhere, Madalena Cunha won Best Supporting Actress for Portuguese film Justa, which also received Best Artistic Contribution, making it one of the festival’s standout international titles.
Mike van Diem won Best Director for Austrian entry Our Girls, while Sten Sheripov took Best Music for Georgian film Supporting Role.
Zhou Cong claimed Best Cinematography for Chinese feature Embers, showing China still knows how to make a frame look expensive.
Online reaction was lively and varied, exactly as expected whenever awards are involved. Many viewers praised Dragonfly as a deserving winner and welcomed a strong British showing in Beijing.
Others were more focused on Yu Hewei, saying his speech was one of the most genuine moments of the night.
Fans of Qiao Shan celebrated what they called a long-overdue recognition, while some netizens did what netizens do best: argue passionately about films they may or may not have watched.
Some commenters also noted how international the winners list looked this year, with honours spread across the UK, China, Portugal, Austria and Georgia. Others joked that their personal favourite film had been “robbed”, the annual tradition more reliable than any trophy category.
The Tiantan Awards 2026 ended with prestige, surprise, and the usual dose of debate. Dragonfly may have swept the top prizes, but China’s acting victories ensured the home crowd still had plenty to celebrate. Which result do you agree with most, and which winner would you have changed?