HKETO, San Francisco promotes Hong Kong films at 2019 San Francisco International Film Festival (with photos)

     The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in San Francisco (HKETO SF) and SFFILM are co-presenting two Hong Kong movies at the 62nd edition of the San Francisco International Film Festival. The Festival is running at venues across the San Francisco Bay Area from April 10 to 23 (San Francisco time).

     Felix Chong's crime thriller "Project Gutenberg", starring superstars Chow Yun-fat and Aaron Kwok, as well as Stanley Kwan's "First Night Nerves" are among the more than 160 films being presented in the Festival. Hong Kong filmmaker Kwan is on hand to present "First Night Nerves" and appeared at two of its screenings at the Festival.

     On April 13 (San Francisco time), HKETO SF hosted a reception in honor of Kwan before the screening of his movie. At the reception, the Director of HKETO SF, Mr Ivanhoe Chang, welcomed Kwan's appearance at the Festival.

     "Three years ago, our office, together with SFFILM, presented a Stanley Kwan retrospective at Hong Kong Cinema and featured two of his classics – 'Rouge' and 'Center Stage'. We are delighted to welcome Stanley back to the San Francisco Bay Area with his new movie, a female-centred drama that was shot entirely in Hong Kong.

     "Blessed with a wealth of seasoned and new talents, Hong Kong's film industry continues to thrive. In the 2019-20 Budget, our Financial Secretary announced an injection of another HK$1 billion (US$128 million) into the Film Development Fund, set up by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government 20 years ago to support film projects. We will make optimal use of the funding to enhance talent grooming and support for novices, promote start-ups, tap new markets for the industry, and build local branding for the sector to facilitate long-term development of the film industry," Mr Chang said.

     Mr Chang said that the Film Development Fund has been providing funding for the winning projects of the First Feature Film Initiative, which seeks to identify and nurture talent by providing financial support for the winners to make their first commercial feature films.

     "We are happy to see that quite a few of these winning projects have been featured in film festivals around the globe. With the additional funding, we expect to see more new projects in the coming years," he added.