"The Assassin" tops this year's Asian Film Awards nomination list. The nominees for the AFA are unveiled on Wednesday, February 3, 2016. [Photo: mtime.com]

The nominees for the 10th annual Asian Film Awards have been unveiled.

Hou Hsiao-Hsien's kung fu masterpiece "The Assassin" tops the nomination list with 9 nods, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Cinematography, and Best Actress for Shu Qi.

Police thriller "Port of Call," which received 13 nominations at the recently announced Hong Kong Film Awards, is tied for second place with Indian period drama,"Bajirao Mastani".

They both have five nominations.

For Best Actor, the nominees include Donnie Yen, Nagase Masatoshi, Feng Xiaogang, Lee Byung-hun and John Arcilla from the Philippines.

And in Best Actress category, Shu Qi will face competition from Zhao Tao, Haruka Ayase, Kim Hye-soo, and Karena Lam.

Established in 2007, this year's ceremony marks the 10th year anniversary for the Asian Film Awards.

36 films from nine Asian countries are competing for the top honors.

The AFAs are due to be handed out in Macau on March 17th.