New york: The drama movie “Family Matters” won the Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film at the 24th New York Asian Film Festival on Sunday, becoming the first Taiwanese film to receive the honor in that category. The family drama, shot by director Pan Ke-yin in his hometown of Changhua County, marks his feature debut and was selected as the winner from a list of eight finalists during the festival’s closing night awards ceremony in New York.

According to Focus Taiwan, linking the award’s name “uncaged” with the courage to break away from the norm, Pan said Monday that although he is someone who does not consider himself brave, making films is the most courageous thing he has ever done. “I want to share the love and courage I felt from everyone — the production team, the cast, the film companies and promoters, and my family — with everyone who needs it now,” Pan said in a statement released in Taipei.

The director also expressed excitement at the film’s upcoming release in Taiwan on Sept. 12, according to the statement issued by the production company Activator Co. The statement also quoted the film’s executive producer Cheng Yu-chieh, who thanked Pan for “taking us this far, for the glorious win for Taiwan and, for fulfilling his dream.”

“Family Matters” centers on 18-year-old Spring, who discovers that she was adopted and begins to uncover the secrets of her working-class family. Taiwanese Alexia Kao, who plays Spring, won the Best Actress prize at the Taipei Film Awards on July 5. “The value of family in one’s life and its place in our minds transcend cultures and ethnicity,” Kao said in a statement Monday. “Thank you for noticing how the story moves people.”

In March, Kao, along with Taiwanese Lan Wei-hua, Tseng Jing-hua, and Queena Huang — the three other main actors in the movie — won the Yakushi Pearl Award for Best Performer as an Ensemble at the Osaka Asian Film Festival. “Family Matters” had its North American premiere this month at the New York Asian Film Festival.