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Once upon a time, Hong Kong had the world’s third largest film industry with an annual output of over 300 films per year. But it has gone into a decline since the mid-90s and the number for 2009 was just over 50. Since Hong Kong has become China’s Special Administrative Region in 1997, local filmmakers have looked across the border as the new frontier and co-productions have seemed to be a way out for the industry. But in order to be in compliance with the Chinese Mainland market, many believe that Hong Kong films have sacrificed their previous signature dynamism to settle for a more “middle-of-the road” approach.
What lays ahead for this once vibrant industry and for those who had helped to create this miracle, and what role will the Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF) play in this context?
Our speaker Mr. Bede Cheng first worked at the HKIFF in 1998 as Festival Assistant. Before that he was working in film and television production, as Assistant Director, Line-Prodcuer, Script Supervisor, and camera crew. He was at the Hong Kong Film Archive from 2000 – 2006 as Programme Assistant, directly involved in the organization of archival film programmes. He rejoined the HKIFF Society at the end of 2006 as Programme and Editorial Coordinator, and became Programme Manager in October 2007.
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