(XINHUA)

Chinese actor Liao Fan won the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the 64th Berlin International Film Festival for his performance in film Black Coal, Thin Ice on February 15, which also grabbed the Golden Bear for Best Picture. Liao, who played a devoted former criminal investigator in the film, became the first Chinese actor to win the honor. The movie, a detective thriller set in northeast China, is scheduled to debut in China in March.

Liao, 40, graduated from the Shanghai Theater Academy in 1997 and has played in dozens of TV operas, movies and plays. He was nominated for best actor at the Golden Horse Film Festival in 2008 for his performance in the movie Ocean Flame.