After the dust settles following the March madness of Art Basel, Art Central and the Hong Kong Arts Festival, the Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF) is due to celebrate its semi-centennial this April – a milestone that serves as a retrospective of the city’s storied cinematic output.
Despite arriving at a difficult time for the local film industry, amid a slew of cinema closures, the 50th edition, which runs from April 1 to 12, strikes a hopeful note with a strong showing of the latest from the art-house circuit.
The festival’s opening and closing selections reflect a focus on high-calibre Asian auteurs. The final instalment of his “Growing Up” trilogy, Anthony Chen’s We Are All Strangers opens the proceedings on April 1, having had the honour of being the first Singaporean feature in the main competition at the Berlin International Film Festival. Chen’s exploration of non-biological familial bonds offers a sober, disciplined start to the Golden Jubilee.
A scene from Philip Yung Tsz-kwong’s Cyclone, which wraps up the festival. Photo: courtesy HKIFF
In contrast, the festival concludes on April 12 with Philip Yung Tsz-kwong’sCyclone. Following its world premiere in Rotterdam, the film provides a localised lens on transgender identity and social marginalisation.
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Between these two bookends, film-goers will be treated to a whopping selection of 215 films from 71 countries and regions, including 11 world premieres and 49 Asian premieres.
More significantly, the festival has secured a formidable roster of talent for public engagement, including lauded Chinese directors Chen Kaige and Jia Zhangke (the latter of whom is this edition’s Filmmaker in Focus), Academy Award-winning French actress Juliette Binoche, Hong Kong auteur Ann Hui On-wah and Second New Wave pioneer Tsai Ming-liang.
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The HKIFF has also expanded its ambassadorial ranks to rope in younger viewers, with fresh-faced talents such as Angela Yuen Lai-lam and Tony Wu Tsz-tung from Hong Kong, Gingle Wang from Taiwan and Thailand’s Metawin Opas-iamkajorn leading the charge.
