- Source: 47th Hong Kong International Film Festival
The 47th Hong Kong International Film Festival (Chinese: 第47屆香港國際電影節) took place from 30 March to 10 April 2023, both online and in-person in Hong Kong. Soi Cheang was selected as the Filmmaker in Focus for this edition and masterclasses led by Tsai Ming-liang and Lee Kang-sheng were featured.
The festival opened with the Hong Kong mystery thriller Mad Fate by Soi Cheang and the documentary Elegies by Ann Hui, and it closed with the Hong Kong drama Vital Signs by Cheuk Wan-chi. This year, 197 films from 64 countries were screened, including nine world premieres, six international premieres, and sixty-seven Asian premieres. Aaron Kwok returned as the ambassador of HKIFF, marking his fifth year in this role.
Background
The 47th Hong Kong International Film Festival was the first edition to return to normalcy following the COVID-19 pandemic. The theme of this edition is "Never Stops". The festival poster was designed by Frank Chan, who also created the posters for the previous two editions. It features little egrets, making it the third edition to use a Hong Kong bird in the design (following the barn swallow in the 45th and the tree sparrow in the 46th), which symbolizes a pursuit of beauty and nature, as well as a sign of fortune. On 1 February 2023, Aaron Kwok was announced to return as the ambassador of the Hong Kong International Film Festival, marking his fifth year in this role. Kwok described 2022 as "a year of harvest", with many Hong Kong films achieving both box office success and critical acclaim, and expressed a hope that the film industry could help society emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. This year was Kwok's final term as ambassador, with his title being succeeded by Karena Lam in the next edition.
Soi Cheang was announced as the Filmmaker in Focus for the festival on 3 February. Albert Lee, the executive director of the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, explained that Cheang was chosen for his notably somber yet unmistakably personal visual style, which rarely deviates from mainstream storytelling conventions while exploring new boundaries in Hong Kong genre filmmaking. Taiwanese director Tsai Ming-liang and his frequent collaborator Lee Kang-sheng were also announced as features in the Masterclass section and would be attending the festival in person. A press conference held on 10 March revealed the full lineup and the titles of the competitive sections.
The film festival opened on 30 March 2023 at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre with Soi Cheang's mystery thriller Mad Fate and Ann Hui's documentary Elegies. The festival was held both physically and online, with physical screenings priced at around $55 to $100 HKD, while online screenings were set at $50 HKD. A total of 197 films from 64 countries were screened, including nine world premieres, six international premieres, and sixty-seven Asian premieres. The film festival was part of the Entertainment Expo Hong Kong, which featured events such as the 16th Asian Film Awards and the 41st Hong Kong Film Awards taking place concurrently.
The Japanese drama Stonewalling by Huang Ji and Ryuji Otsuka won the Firebird Award for the Young Cinema Competition (Chinese-language), while the Mexican-Danish-French drama Tótem by Lila Avilés won the Firebird Award for the Young Cinema Competition (World). The Danish-Polish documentary Apolonia, Apolonia by Lea Glob received the Firebird Award for Documentary Competition. The FIPRESCI Prize was also awarded to Stonewalling, while the Taiwanese film Bad Education by Kai Ko received a Special Mention. The festival closed with the Hong Kong medical drama Vital Signs by Cheuk Wan-chi on 10 April.
Jury
The jury of the Firebird Awards comprises:
= Young Cinema Competition (Chinese-language)
=Hsu Hsiao-ming, Taiwanese filmmaker
Zhang Lü, Chinese filmmaker
Mary Stephen, a French-based Hong Kong film editor
= Young Cinema Competition (World)
=Ann Hui, Hong Kong filmmaker
Emmanuel Burdeau, French film critic
Clarence Tsui, Hong Kong film critic
= Documentary Competition
=Malcolm Clarke, Chinese-based English filmmaker
Uli Gaulke, German documentary filmmaker
Qiu Jiongjiong, Chinese filmmaker
Program sections
= Opening and closing films
=The following films were chosen as the opening and closing features of the film festival, marking the Asian premiere of Mad Fate and world premieres of Elegies and Vital Signs:
= Gala Presentation
=The following films have been selected for screening in the Gala Presentation section:
= Cinephile Paradise
=The following films have been selected for screening in the Cinephile Paradise section:
= Firebird Awards
=Young Cinema Competition (Chinese-language)
The following films were selected to compete in the Young Cinema Competition (Chinese-language) at the Firebird Awards. Stonewalling emerged as the winner, with Huang Xiaoxiong also named Best Actress for her performance in the film. Hong Heng-fai was named Best Director for Kissing the Ground You Walked On, and Li Xuejian received the Best Actor award for To Love Again. Bad Education was given a Special Mention.
Young Cinema Competition (World)
The following films were selected to compete in the Young Cinema Competition (World) at the Firebird Awards. Tótem emerged as the winner, with Martín Benchimol awarded Best Director for his debut The Castle. Mirko Giannini was named Best Actor for his role in Astrakan, while the ensemble female cast received the Best Actress award for 20,000 Species of Bees.
Documentary Competition
The following films were selected to compete in the Young Cinema Competition (Documentary) at the Firebird Awards. Apolonia, Apolonia emerged as the winner, while The Hamlet Syndrome received the jury prize.
= Pan-Chinese Cinema
=Filmmaker in Focus
Soi Cheang was announced as the Filmmaker in Focus for the film festival on 3 February 2023, showcasing twelve of his previous works:
Chinese-language Restored Classics
Four restored Chinese classics were showcased as part of a sidebar at the film festival:
= Masters and Auteurs
=The Masters
The following films were selected for screening in the Masterclass section, including two works by Tsai Ming-Liang, who attended the festival in person to host a masterclass:
Les Auteurs
The following films have been selected for screening in the Les Auteurs section:
= Global Vision
=The following films have been selected for screening in the Global Vision section:
= Nordic Lights
=A new special section titled "Nordic Lights" was introduced in this edition of the festival, showcasing works from Nordic cinema:
= Fantastic Beats
=The following films have been selected for screening in the Fantastic Beats section:
= Focus
=The Complete Itami Juzo Directorial Retrospective
Digitally remastered 4K versions of all ten feature films made by Japanese filmmaker Juzo Itami were showcased at the festival:
Jean-Luc Godard x Anna Karina: A Retrospective
To commemorate the passing of French filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard, eight feature films made by Godard and his muse and ex-wife, Hanne Karin Bayer, were showcased at the festival:
References
External links
HKIFF official website