Chinese filmmaker Jia Zhangke's A Touch of Sin secured this year's Black Pearl award for best narrative film at a ceremony during the close of this year's Abu Dhabi Film Festival, The Hollywood Reporter said.

The prize, which also comes with a $100,000 prize, was among six nods dished out in the 15-strong narrative feature competition strand.

Hiner Saleem's My Sweet Pepper Land, an Iraq, France, Germany and UAE co-production, walked away with $50,000 and the evening's special jury award.

Best film from the Arab world went to Mohamed Jabarah Al-Daradji's In the Sands of Babylon which also secured $50,000 and best director, with the same size purse went to Merzak Allouache for his film The Rooftops.

The best actor and actress awards carry no cash prizes.

Diego Peretti won best actor for The Reconstruction from Argentina's Juan Esteban Taratuto while Judi Dench added a plaudit for Philomena, directed by Brit Stephen Frears.

The festival also dished out awards across its new horizons section for the work of first- and second-time directors from around the world including a best actor gong for Jesse Eisenberg for his outing in Richard Ayoade's The Double.

The New Horizons Black Pearl award and $100,000 went to Italy, U.K. title Still Life, directed by Uberto Pasolini (Italy, United Kingdom).

The Black Pearl nod in memory of Jake Ebert for best documentary and an $80,000 cash purse went to These Birds Walk, directed by Omar Mullick, Bassem Tariq (Pakistan, USA).

The 2013 Abu Dhabi Film Festival Audience Choice award and $40,000 went to Nicole Holofcener's Enough Said.