The acclaimed Iranian film “A Separation” took top honors at the 6th Asian Film Awards in Hong Kong on Monday night, continuing its run of wins at major awards ceremonies. Last month it won the Academy Award for best-foreign language film and in January took home a trophy in the same category at the Golden Globes.

It was the first Asian film from a country outside East Asia to win best film at the AFA. Previous winners came from South Korea, Japan and Thailand. The win sends a strong signal that the awards intend to be truly pan-Asian, which is part of the AFA’s objective.

“A Separation,” a drama about a woman seeking a divorce from her husband, won in three other categories: best director and best screenwriter for Asghar Farhadi, and best editor for Hayedeh Safiyari.
Leila Hatami, the film’s star, and Ms. Safiyari accepted the best-film award on behalf of Mr. Farhadi, who wasn’t able to attend the ceremony.

“As an Iranian … I am really glad that Iran has been mentioned all around the world for its culture and its film, not sanctions and war-like words,” Ms. Safiyari said, echoing Mr. Farhadi’s Oscar acceptance speech.

Best actress went to Hong Kong favorite Deanie Ip for her sentimental role as a servant who suffers a stroke and is cared for by her master in “A Simple Life”. It’s Ms. Ip’s third major best-actress award for the film, following wins last year at the Venice Film Festival and the Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan.

Donny Damara won best actor for his bittersweet portrayal of a transgender prostitute dealing with the unexpected arrival of his teenage daughter that he hasn’t seen in 15 years in Indonesia’s “Lovely Man.”