'Orphans of a Nation' takes Grand Prize at Seoul International Drama Awards

The 15th Seoul International Drama Awards (SDA) ceremony was hosted with the least number of presenters and no recipients due to Covid-19. [SDA]

The Grand Prize of this year’s Seoul International Drama Awards (SDA) went to the Brazilian drama series “Orphans of a Nation,” while KBS drama series "When the Camellia Blooms” took home five prizes at the annual award ceremony aired on MBC on Tuesday.

“Orphans of a Nation” centers around a Syrian refugee heroine and a male main character from Lebanon overcoming hardships with familial love. “The quality of the work was enhanced by a solid narrative that dealt with refugees and their plight, [along with] sophisticated visual aesthetics,” the judges are said to have evaluated.

“Bolivar,” a Columbian drama series, won the Golden Bird Prize, and Chinese drama series “Mr. Fighting” won the Silver Bird Prize in the Serial Drama Category. The former is based on the true story of Simon Bolivar, a revolutionary leader who liberated Latin America from the Spanish Empire in the 19th century. “Mr. Fighting” tells the story of an anonymous entertainer’s rise to stardom.

French content “18h30” won the Golden Bird Prize in the newly established Short Form Category.

As for individual prizes, actor Kong Hyo-jin of “Camellia” won Best Actress, while Lim Sang-choon took home the Best Screenwriter award. Best Actor went to British actor Waleed Zuaiter for his role on British crime thriller television series “Baghad Central,” while Best Director went to Adam Smith of British war drama series “World on Fire.”

In the non-competition category, the Excellent Korean Drama Prize in the Outstanding Korean Drama category went to “Camellia,” and lead actor Kang Ha-neul won the Outstanding Korean Actor prize of the same category. The series also received the Outstanding Korean Drama OST Prize for its soundtrack “Like a Heroine in the Movie” by the singer Punch.

Other local drama series “Crash Landing on You” on tvN, “Hot Stove League” on SBS and “Extraordinary You” on MBC received the Outstanding Korean Drama prizes.

BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]