The Hawaii International Film Festival (HIFF) is partnering with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, San Francisco (SFETO) to present Spotlight on Hong Kong with a special focus on renowned Hong Kong filmmaker Ann Hui at this year's festival. The festival, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary, runs from November 5 to 29 (Hawaii time).
Included in the Spotlight on Hong Kong is an Ann Hui mini-retrospective and a new documentary on Hui's life and career, "Keep Rolling", as well as a Hong Kong film "My Prince Edward". The retrospective features three of Hui's films: "Boat People", "Song of the Exile" and "A Simple Life".
In addition to being featured in the Spotlight on Hong Kong, Hui is also the honouree of the HIFF40 Career Achievement Award.
A Conversation with Ann Hui, a special live-streamed event, was hosted by the HIFF on November 11 (Hawaii time). Hui discussed her amazing career as well as her outlook on the future of Hong Kong cinema. The director of "Keep Rolling", Man Lim-chung, also joined the Conversation.
During the opening remarks of the Conversation, the Director of the SFETO, Ms Jacko Tsang, thanked the HIFF for sharing its appreciation of Hong Kong movies and partnering with the office to present the Spotlight on Hong Kong at the annual festival.
"This year, the focus is on one of our most celebrated filmmakers – a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award at this year's Venice Film Festival, and a six-time winner of the Hong Kong Film Awards' Best Director," Ms Tsang said.
"The mini-retrospective included in this year's Spotlight on Hong Kong allows us to watch some of Hui's best films. Of course, the documentary, 'Keep Rolling', is something that cannot be missed – it is not only a story about Ann, but also a story about Hong Kong and Hong Kong cinema," she added.
Ms Tsang said she was happy to see the HIFF featuring the works of two female directors from Hong Kong. "My Prince Edward", by first-time director Norris Wong, is one of the successful projects funded through the First Feature Film Initiative, launched by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government in 2013 to nurture young and talented filmmakers.
"The HKSAR Government has recently launched another programme, the Directors' Succession Scheme, in which established directors will team up with young filmmakers to co-produce films, with subsidies granted. We hope this scheme will help realise some great projects that we can bring to the US audience soon," Ms Tsang said.
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