Hong Kong’s biggest ever local hit A Guilty Conscience was named best film at the 42nd Hong Kong Film Awards (Hkfa), while Mad Fate’s Soi Cheang took best director and The Goldfinger swept six awards including best actor for Tony Leung.
A Guilty Conscience producer Bill Kong received the top award on stage from acclaimed Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda. That was the only win on the night for the courtroom drama, which went into the awards ceremony with 10 nominations.
Scroll down for full winners list
Murder mystery Mad Fate scooped three awards comprising best screenplay, best editing and best director for Cheang.
A Guilty Conscience producer Bill Kong received the top award on stage from acclaimed Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda. That was the only win on the night for the courtroom drama, which went into the awards ceremony with 10 nominations.
Scroll down for full winners list
Murder mystery Mad Fate scooped three awards comprising best screenplay, best editing and best director for Cheang.
- 4/15/2024
- ScreenDaily
Crime drama “The Goldfinger” was the numerical winner at the Hong Kong Film Awards, where it won six prizes on Sunday. But it missed out on the best film prize, which went to box office record breaker “A Guilty Conscience.”
“The Goldfinger,” a retro financial thriller starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Andy Lau Tak-wah, earned a slew of technical award as well as the lead actor prize for Leung.
Two films took three prizes each: “In Broad Daylight,” an investigation into abuse at a care home, and “Mad Fate,” Soi Cheang’s grungy examination of superstition in the city. “In Broad Daylight,” which opened anonymously this weekend in mainland Chinese cinemas, picked up three performance awards — best actress award for Jennifer Yu, best supporting actor for David Chiang and best supporting actress for Rachel Leung. “Mad Fate,” which premiered in Berlin in February 2023, picked up the best director award, best...
“The Goldfinger,” a retro financial thriller starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Andy Lau Tak-wah, earned a slew of technical award as well as the lead actor prize for Leung.
Two films took three prizes each: “In Broad Daylight,” an investigation into abuse at a care home, and “Mad Fate,” Soi Cheang’s grungy examination of superstition in the city. “In Broad Daylight,” which opened anonymously this weekend in mainland Chinese cinemas, picked up three performance awards — best actress award for Jennifer Yu, best supporting actor for David Chiang and best supporting actress for Rachel Leung. “Mad Fate,” which premiered in Berlin in February 2023, picked up the best director award, best...
- 4/15/2024
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Legal drama A Guilty Conscience took the top award for best film at this year’s Hong Kong Film Awards, while crime thriller The Goldfinger was the biggest winner overall with six prizes, including best actor for Tony Leung Chiu-wai.
A Guilty Conscience, produced by Edko Films, holds the record for the highest-grossing Hong Kong film ever with a gross of around $15M. It tells the story of a lawyer trying to free a client convicted due to his own negligence, who has to go up against one of Hong Kong’s most powerful business families.
Emperor Motion Pictures’ The Goldfinger, about one of Hong Kong’s biggest financial scandals, also picked up awards for best cinematography, best art direction, best costume and make-up design, best sound design and best visual effects.
In Broad Daylight, about a reporter exposing cases of abuse in a care home, scooped three acting awards for actress Jennifer Yu,...
A Guilty Conscience, produced by Edko Films, holds the record for the highest-grossing Hong Kong film ever with a gross of around $15M. It tells the story of a lawyer trying to free a client convicted due to his own negligence, who has to go up against one of Hong Kong’s most powerful business families.
Emperor Motion Pictures’ The Goldfinger, about one of Hong Kong’s biggest financial scandals, also picked up awards for best cinematography, best art direction, best costume and make-up design, best sound design and best visual effects.
In Broad Daylight, about a reporter exposing cases of abuse in a care home, scooped three acting awards for actress Jennifer Yu,...
- 4/15/2024
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
Paramount Plus
Beverley McGarvey has been appointed president of Network 10, head of streaming and regional lead for Australia and New Zealand, with immediate effect by Paramount Global. She reports to Pam Kaufman, president & CEO of international markets, global consumer products and experiences at the group. The role gives her oversight of Network 10 and its portfolio of brands, including 10 Play.
McGarvey will maintain her current responsibilities, overseeing all original content out of Australia in alignment with Paramount’s global studio organisation and the businesses’ commercial capabilities. She will also continue to lead Paramount+ in Australia, reporting to Marco Nobili, EVP and international Gm of Paramount+.
“Beverley is one of Australia’s leading media executives and has a proven track record of driving creative and commercial success in one of our most important, priority markets,” said Kaufman.
“We are well-positioned to maintain our strong position in Australia as the only...
Beverley McGarvey has been appointed president of Network 10, head of streaming and regional lead for Australia and New Zealand, with immediate effect by Paramount Global. She reports to Pam Kaufman, president & CEO of international markets, global consumer products and experiences at the group. The role gives her oversight of Network 10 and its portfolio of brands, including 10 Play.
McGarvey will maintain her current responsibilities, overseeing all original content out of Australia in alignment with Paramount’s global studio organisation and the businesses’ commercial capabilities. She will also continue to lead Paramount+ in Australia, reporting to Marco Nobili, EVP and international Gm of Paramount+.
“Beverley is one of Australia’s leading media executives and has a proven track record of driving creative and commercial success in one of our most important, priority markets,” said Kaufman.
“We are well-positioned to maintain our strong position in Australia as the only...
- 3/18/2024
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Linmon Pictures, one of the most outward-looking mainland Chinese entertainment firms, is preparing premium series “Hate Coin.”
The show is being produced in association with Jonathan Wong and Justina Shih’s production company Octagon Metatainment, a Hong Kong-based multimedia studio.
“Hate Coin” is based on international best-selling novel “Second Sister,” by successful Hong Kong novelist Chan Ho Kei, whose previous book “The Borrowed” was a crime story that panned five-decades.
The story follows the activities of a young woman whose school-age sister appeared to have committed suicide. Suspecting foul play, the woman trams up with a manipulative hacker and cybersecurity expert to try to dig deeper.
“What follows is a cat and mouse game through the city of Hong Kong and its digital underground, especially an online gossip platform, where someone has been slandering Siu-Man. The novel is also populated by a man harassing girls on mass transit; high school kids,...
The show is being produced in association with Jonathan Wong and Justina Shih’s production company Octagon Metatainment, a Hong Kong-based multimedia studio.
“Hate Coin” is based on international best-selling novel “Second Sister,” by successful Hong Kong novelist Chan Ho Kei, whose previous book “The Borrowed” was a crime story that panned five-decades.
The story follows the activities of a young woman whose school-age sister appeared to have committed suicide. Suspecting foul play, the woman trams up with a manipulative hacker and cybersecurity expert to try to dig deeper.
“What follows is a cat and mouse game through the city of Hong Kong and its digital underground, especially an online gossip platform, where someone has been slandering Siu-Man. The novel is also populated by a man harassing girls on mass transit; high school kids,...
- 3/15/2024
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
China’s vast Alibaba Digital Media and Entertainment Group (Adme) on Monday announced plans to inject $640 million into Hong Kong’s entertainment industry, with funds to be spread across movies, TV dramas, events and training for the city’s emerging artists.
The “Hong Kong Cultural and Art Industry Revitalization Program” was launched during the first day of Hong Kong’s annual Filmart industry gathering and claims to have hooked Alibaba up with a slew of major local players, including Edko Films, Media Asia Group, One Cool Group, Tvb, Shaw Brothers Pictures and Emperor Motion Pictures.
Among the initiatives announced was a plan to fund schooling through Alibaba Pictures for 20 local filmmakers at the Hong Kong Baptist University Academy of Film.
The move was welcomed by the Hong Kong government, which has placed the development of its entertainment industry at the heart of recent promotional and economic policies.
“We eagerly hope...
The “Hong Kong Cultural and Art Industry Revitalization Program” was launched during the first day of Hong Kong’s annual Filmart industry gathering and claims to have hooked Alibaba up with a slew of major local players, including Edko Films, Media Asia Group, One Cool Group, Tvb, Shaw Brothers Pictures and Emperor Motion Pictures.
Among the initiatives announced was a plan to fund schooling through Alibaba Pictures for 20 local filmmakers at the Hong Kong Baptist University Academy of Film.
The move was welcomed by the Hong Kong government, which has placed the development of its entertainment industry at the heart of recent promotional and economic policies.
“We eagerly hope...
- 3/11/2024
- by Mathew Scott
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Alibaba, China’s e-commerce and entertainment conglomerate, said Monday that it is committing Hk$5 billion ($640 million) over five years to the development of Hong Kong’s film and TV industries.
The move was announced on the first day of FilMart, the annual rights market for the Asian industries, at an event attended by Fan Luyuan, chairman and CEO of Alibaba’s digital media and entertainment unit, and Kevin Yeung, the Hong Kong government’s secretary for culture, sports and tourism.
Alibaba’s Hong Kong Cultural and Art Industry Revitalization Program “will focus on film production and distribution, rights acquisitions, TV series production, investments in concerts, collaboration with performance venues and talent development, etc. It will also work with leading local film and TV companies to co-produce films for cinemas, TV dramas and dramas for streaming platforms,” Yeung said.
He also expects Alibaba’s digital media unit to make Hong Kong its second headquarters.
The move was announced on the first day of FilMart, the annual rights market for the Asian industries, at an event attended by Fan Luyuan, chairman and CEO of Alibaba’s digital media and entertainment unit, and Kevin Yeung, the Hong Kong government’s secretary for culture, sports and tourism.
Alibaba’s Hong Kong Cultural and Art Industry Revitalization Program “will focus on film production and distribution, rights acquisitions, TV series production, investments in concerts, collaboration with performance venues and talent development, etc. It will also work with leading local film and TV companies to co-produce films for cinemas, TV dramas and dramas for streaming platforms,” Yeung said.
He also expects Alibaba’s digital media unit to make Hong Kong its second headquarters.
- 3/11/2024
- by Faye Bradley and Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
As Filmart gets underway, Hong Kong’s major production companies, including Edko Films, Emperor Motion Pictures (Emp), Media Asia, One Cool Group and Universe Entertainment, will be unveiling their new titles in enormous booths at the front of the trade show floor, some of which will be as elaborate as film sets.
Many of the films they are launching are big-budget Hong Kong-China co-productions, featuring top Hong Kong stars and directors, and aimed at audiences in both China and Hong Kong. Emp has Derek Kwok’s Raging Havoc, starring Andy Lau and Nicholas Tse; Mandarin Motion Pictures has The Prosecutor, starring and directed by Donnie Yen; and Media Asia is launching four new titles headed by Behind The Scene, produced by Infernal Affairs director Andrew Lau. One Cool’s slate includes a trio of action films starring Louis Koo and produced by Soi Cheang.
But behind all the glamour, stars and action,...
Many of the films they are launching are big-budget Hong Kong-China co-productions, featuring top Hong Kong stars and directors, and aimed at audiences in both China and Hong Kong. Emp has Derek Kwok’s Raging Havoc, starring Andy Lau and Nicholas Tse; Mandarin Motion Pictures has The Prosecutor, starring and directed by Donnie Yen; and Media Asia is launching four new titles headed by Behind The Scene, produced by Infernal Affairs director Andrew Lau. One Cool’s slate includes a trio of action films starring Louis Koo and produced by Soi Cheang.
But behind all the glamour, stars and action,...
- 3/11/2024
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
Dayo Wong and Michael Hui head the cast of The Last Dance, which Emperor Motion Pictures (Emp) is launching at Hong Kong Filmart, along with Wai Ka Fai’s Detective Vs Sleuths 2.
Wong plays a debt-ridden wedding planner who finds unexpected success as a funeral planner, but he has to win over a traditional Taoist priest to stay in the business. It marks Wong’s first film after two massive hits, A Guilty Conscience and Table For Six, which made him one of Hong Kong’s most bankable actors.
The Last Dance, currently in post-production, is the third film from...
Wong plays a debt-ridden wedding planner who finds unexpected success as a funeral planner, but he has to win over a traditional Taoist priest to stay in the business. It marks Wong’s first film after two massive hits, A Guilty Conscience and Table For Six, which made him one of Hong Kong’s most bankable actors.
The Last Dance, currently in post-production, is the third film from...
- 3/11/2024
- ScreenDaily
The Hong Kong-Europe-Asian Film Collaboration Funding Scheme being launched this week in Berlin is intended as a major component of an exercise in rehabilitating and internationalizing the Hong Kong film industry.
In unprecedented fashion, the territory’s Film Development Council is getting ready to start giving cash grants to movie projects that don’t necessarily have to shoot in the city or even use one of its three official languages.
Whereas in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, Hong Kong produced over 300 movies a year, for local, regional and international consumption, creating stars including Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh, the 21st century has witnessed a downsizing and recalibration of the Hong Kong production system.
For much of the past two decades the city operated as a highly-skilled but smaller system that sat alongside and fed into the mainland Chinese industry during a period when the Chinese economy...
In unprecedented fashion, the territory’s Film Development Council is getting ready to start giving cash grants to movie projects that don’t necessarily have to shoot in the city or even use one of its three official languages.
Whereas in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, Hong Kong produced over 300 movies a year, for local, regional and international consumption, creating stars including Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh, the 21st century has witnessed a downsizing and recalibration of the Hong Kong production system.
For much of the past two decades the city operated as a highly-skilled but smaller system that sat alongside and fed into the mainland Chinese industry during a period when the Chinese economy...
- 2/17/2024
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
“In Broad Daylight,” an expose of real events in a care home for the elderly, dominated the nominations for the Hong Kong Film Awards.
The Lawrence Kan-directed comedy-drama received 16 nominations, at the Tuesday nominations event, including best picture and best new director as well as others for cinematography, editing sound design and original song.
The story sees an investigative reporter go under cover to expose cruelty and other wrong-doings at the Rainbow Bridge Care Home. It premiered last year at the Shanghai film festival and was a highlight of the New York Asian Film Festival, but came away empty-handed from the Golden Horse Film Awards, where it had been nominated in five categories. It enjoyed its commercial release in Hong Kong in November.
Other contenders in the Hkfa best film category are: Nick Cheung’s “Time Still Turns the Pages,” Soi Cheang’s “Mad Fate,” Felix Chong’s “The Goldfinger...
The Lawrence Kan-directed comedy-drama received 16 nominations, at the Tuesday nominations event, including best picture and best new director as well as others for cinematography, editing sound design and original song.
The story sees an investigative reporter go under cover to expose cruelty and other wrong-doings at the Rainbow Bridge Care Home. It premiered last year at the Shanghai film festival and was a highlight of the New York Asian Film Festival, but came away empty-handed from the Golden Horse Film Awards, where it had been nominated in five categories. It enjoyed its commercial release in Hong Kong in November.
Other contenders in the Hkfa best film category are: Nick Cheung’s “Time Still Turns the Pages,” Soi Cheang’s “Mad Fate,” Felix Chong’s “The Goldfinger...
- 2/8/2024
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Lawrence Kan’s newsroom drama In Broad Daylight leads the pack going into the 42nd Hong Kong Film Awards with 16 nominations.
The feature, which follows an undercover journalist who exposes the abuse of residents in a nursing home, secured nods in all but three of the 19 categories. It marks the second feature by Kan and proved the fourth highest grossing local film in 2023.
Scroll down for full list of nominations
Also gaining multiple nominations was Nick Cheuk’s emotive drama Time Still Turns The Pages and Felix Chong’s financial crime extravaganza The Goldfinger, which secured 12 nods apiece, while Jack Ng...
The feature, which follows an undercover journalist who exposes the abuse of residents in a nursing home, secured nods in all but three of the 19 categories. It marks the second feature by Kan and proved the fourth highest grossing local film in 2023.
Scroll down for full list of nominations
Also gaining multiple nominations was Nick Cheuk’s emotive drama Time Still Turns The Pages and Felix Chong’s financial crime extravaganza The Goldfinger, which secured 12 nods apiece, while Jack Ng...
- 2/6/2024
- ScreenDaily
The financial crime drama reunites Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Andy Lau for the first time since ‘Infernal Affairs 3’.
Felix Chong’s The Goldfinger has made an impressive $3.2m (Hk$25m) in its home market of Hong Kong, reinvigorating the declining box office for local films.
The financial crime drama, which reunites superstars Tony Leung Chiu-wai with Andy Lau for the first time since closing out the hit Infernal Affairs trilogy two decades ago, has topped the Hong Kong box office since opening on December 30.
Released by Emperor Motion Pictures, it crossed $3.2m (Hk$25m) after just nine days (as...
Felix Chong’s The Goldfinger has made an impressive $3.2m (Hk$25m) in its home market of Hong Kong, reinvigorating the declining box office for local films.
The financial crime drama, which reunites superstars Tony Leung Chiu-wai with Andy Lau for the first time since closing out the hit Infernal Affairs trilogy two decades ago, has topped the Hong Kong box office since opening on December 30.
Released by Emperor Motion Pictures, it crossed $3.2m (Hk$25m) after just nine days (as...
- 1/9/2024
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
Hong Kong saw “A Guilty Conscience” become the highest-grossing film of all time at its local box office. But the wider cinema market in Hong Kong remained stuck far below pre-pandemic levels.
Data from Hong Kong Box Office Limited, a joint venture between Motion Picture Industry Association (Mpia) and the Hong Kong Theatres Association, showed annual cinema revenue of Hk$1.43 billion ($184 million) in 2023.
That was a 25% improvement on 2022, when the industry was battered by on-off closures due to government Covid-control measures, and managed only Hk$1.14 billion ($146 million). But the 2023 score also remained 25% shy of 2019, the last pre-pandemic year, when box office reached Hk$1.92 billion ($246 million).
Hyper-local courtroom drama, “A Guilty Conscience” earned Hk$115 million ($14.7 million), but it was the only local title to make it into the territory’s top ten chart in 2023. Next in line were “Oppenheimer” (Hk$72.8 million), “Mission: Impossible -Dead Reckoning Part 1” (Hk$60.5 million), “The Super Mario...
Data from Hong Kong Box Office Limited, a joint venture between Motion Picture Industry Association (Mpia) and the Hong Kong Theatres Association, showed annual cinema revenue of Hk$1.43 billion ($184 million) in 2023.
That was a 25% improvement on 2022, when the industry was battered by on-off closures due to government Covid-control measures, and managed only Hk$1.14 billion ($146 million). But the 2023 score also remained 25% shy of 2019, the last pre-pandemic year, when box office reached Hk$1.92 billion ($246 million).
Hyper-local courtroom drama, “A Guilty Conscience” earned Hk$115 million ($14.7 million), but it was the only local title to make it into the territory’s top ten chart in 2023. Next in line were “Oppenheimer” (Hk$72.8 million), “Mission: Impossible -Dead Reckoning Part 1” (Hk$60.5 million), “The Super Mario...
- 1/3/2024
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
The top 10 films of the year were led by local feature ‘A Guilty Conscience’.
The Hong Kong box office recorded a bleak 2023 with takings of $183.3m (Hk$1.43bn) – 25.5% lower than in pre-pandemic 2019.
The sharp decline puts the final tally at a level not seen since 2011, according to the Hong Kong Box Office.
Local courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience made history as the first local film ever to cross the Hk$100m ($12.75m) milestone, following its release on January 21, and ended up as the overall box office champion. It beat Hollywood tentpoles Oppenheimer and Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, which...
The Hong Kong box office recorded a bleak 2023 with takings of $183.3m (Hk$1.43bn) – 25.5% lower than in pre-pandemic 2019.
The sharp decline puts the final tally at a level not seen since 2011, according to the Hong Kong Box Office.
Local courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience made history as the first local film ever to cross the Hk$100m ($12.75m) milestone, following its release on January 21, and ended up as the overall box office champion. It beat Hollywood tentpoles Oppenheimer and Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, which...
- 1/2/2024
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
The top 10 films of the year were led by local feature ‘A Guilty Conscience’.
The Hong Kong box office recorded a bleak 2023 with takings of $183.3m (Hk$1.43bn) – 25.5% lower than in pre-pandemic 2019.
The sharp decline puts the final tally at a level not seen since 2011, according to the Hong Kong Box Office.
Local courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience made history as the first local film ever to cross the Hk$100m ($12.75m) milestone, following its release on January 21, and ended up as the overall box office champion. It beat Hollywood tentpoles Oppenheimer and Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, which...
The Hong Kong box office recorded a bleak 2023 with takings of $183.3m (Hk$1.43bn) – 25.5% lower than in pre-pandemic 2019.
The sharp decline puts the final tally at a level not seen since 2011, according to the Hong Kong Box Office.
Local courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience made history as the first local film ever to cross the Hk$100m ($12.75m) milestone, following its release on January 21, and ended up as the overall box office champion. It beat Hollywood tentpoles Oppenheimer and Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, which...
- 1/2/2024
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
“If you really missed not seeing us on screen together, then ‘The Goldfinger’ is your opportunity to do so,” says Hong Kong superstar Andy Lau of his new crime movie where he is again paired with Tony Leung Chiu-wai (“In the Mood for Love”).
The film releases at the end of the month in different parts of Asia and North America (from Dec. 30). Pre-release marketing and promotional efforts make much of the Lau-Leung repairing some twenty years after the “Infernal Affairs” trio of hit movies. The movies were both critical and commercial hits and contained an iconic rooftop scene in Hong Kong’s Wanchai district with the police undercover agent and the mobster’s mole facing off guns drawn.
The pair clearly rate each other highly for their acting skills and for the kind of professionalism that has kept them both a the top of the game for more than two decades.
The film releases at the end of the month in different parts of Asia and North America (from Dec. 30). Pre-release marketing and promotional efforts make much of the Lau-Leung repairing some twenty years after the “Infernal Affairs” trio of hit movies. The movies were both critical and commercial hits and contained an iconic rooftop scene in Hong Kong’s Wanchai district with the police undercover agent and the mobster’s mole facing off guns drawn.
The pair clearly rate each other highly for their acting skills and for the kind of professionalism that has kept them both a the top of the game for more than two decades.
- 12/24/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
I.E. Entertainment, the global distribution outfit founded and run by industry veterans Indra and Erlina Suharjono, has come on board to handle worldwide sales for Cathay Film Company’s “Coolie.”
The TV miniseries is inspired by the little-known history of enslaved Chinese ‘coolies’ in Cuba in the 1860s. It begins shooting this week in the Dominican Republic and will also include locations in Panama.
I.E. Entertainment will introduce “Coolie” to buyers for the first time at the Asia Television Forum & Market (Atf), which runs this week in Singapore.
The eight-episode English and Chinese language drama series is a global production from Meileen Choo’s Singapore-based Cathay Film Company and features a multinational ensemble cast from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Cuba and Colombia.
Arvin Chen is directing. In-Ah Lee (“Land of Plenty,” “Don’t Come Knockin’” “The Way I Spent the End of the World”) is the series’ executive producer. Ed Buhr...
The TV miniseries is inspired by the little-known history of enslaved Chinese ‘coolies’ in Cuba in the 1860s. It begins shooting this week in the Dominican Republic and will also include locations in Panama.
I.E. Entertainment will introduce “Coolie” to buyers for the first time at the Asia Television Forum & Market (Atf), which runs this week in Singapore.
The eight-episode English and Chinese language drama series is a global production from Meileen Choo’s Singapore-based Cathay Film Company and features a multinational ensemble cast from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Cuba and Colombia.
Arvin Chen is directing. In-Ah Lee (“Land of Plenty,” “Don’t Come Knockin’” “The Way I Spent the End of the World”) is the series’ executive producer. Ed Buhr...
- 12/4/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Hong Kong-based studio Edko Films will launch “Table for Six 2,” a sequel to its 2022 smash hit, at Tiffcom, the rights market attached to the Tokyo International Film Festival.
The heartfelt comedy is again written and directed by Sunny Chan, who enjoyed breakout success with “Table for Six,” a comedy-drama that starts with an awkward family reunion dinner where past and present romantic relationships are tangled and almost anything that could go wrong did.
For the sequel. Chan has reunited the original cast – Stephy Tang, Louis Cheung, Ivana Wong, Lin Min Chen, Peter Chan Charm Man – for three weddings and their aftermath. “Marriage isn’t just about two individuals; it involves a whole family of aunts, uncles, and cousins,” says Edko,
Now in production, the film is being produced by Bill Kong, Ivy Ho and Tang Wai But. Rights will also be pitched at the American Film Market.
The firm is...
The heartfelt comedy is again written and directed by Sunny Chan, who enjoyed breakout success with “Table for Six,” a comedy-drama that starts with an awkward family reunion dinner where past and present romantic relationships are tangled and almost anything that could go wrong did.
For the sequel. Chan has reunited the original cast – Stephy Tang, Louis Cheung, Ivana Wong, Lin Min Chen, Peter Chan Charm Man – for three weddings and their aftermath. “Marriage isn’t just about two individuals; it involves a whole family of aunts, uncles, and cousins,” says Edko,
Now in production, the film is being produced by Bill Kong, Ivy Ho and Tang Wai But. Rights will also be pitched at the American Film Market.
The firm is...
- 10/22/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Arvin Chen is to direct “Coolie,” a limited series featuring enslaved Chinese workers in 19th century Cuba.
The eight-part series is the first to emerge from Cathay Film Company, a recent production venture launched by Singapore-based industry veteran Meileen Choo.
In the mid-1800s, when the African slave trade was outlawed throughout the Americas, plantation owners in Cuba instead began trafficking indentured servants from China and other parts of Asia. These, so-called coolies were often treated as slaves, but some integrated into Cuban society and joined the country’s fight for independence from Spain. The provided a low-cost workforce for farms, restaurants, factories and were instrumental in setting up Chinatowns across the world.
With Hong Kong actor Louise Wong in the lead role as a young woman who departs from southern China to marry a political exile working on a sugarcane plantation in Cuba, the narrative sees her join forces...
The eight-part series is the first to emerge from Cathay Film Company, a recent production venture launched by Singapore-based industry veteran Meileen Choo.
In the mid-1800s, when the African slave trade was outlawed throughout the Americas, plantation owners in Cuba instead began trafficking indentured servants from China and other parts of Asia. These, so-called coolies were often treated as slaves, but some integrated into Cuban society and joined the country’s fight for independence from Spain. The provided a low-cost workforce for farms, restaurants, factories and were instrumental in setting up Chinatowns across the world.
With Hong Kong actor Louise Wong in the lead role as a young woman who departs from southern China to marry a political exile working on a sugarcane plantation in Cuba, the narrative sees her join forces...
- 10/19/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Supported by the Hong Kong Economic Trade Office, London, Focus Hong Kong brings the very best in new and classic Hong Kong cinema to London in July, with a diverse programme of screenings at the presBgious BFI Southbank. Films include three of the most acclaimed and popular Hong Kong films of the year, with the UK Premieres of all-star crime epic Where the Wind Blows from award-winning director Philip Yung and horror anthology and international festival favourite Let it Ghost, and a special screening of social justice courtroom thriller A Guilty Conscience, one of Hong Kong's biggest box office hits of 2023 so far. Also included is the UK Premiere of a new 4K version of the Hong Kong New Wave classic Nomad, re-edited by director Patrick Tam after being heavily censored on its original release, starring the immortal Leslie Cheung in an early breakthrough role, screening to mark the 20th...
- 6/21/2023
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
Bali International Film Festival (Balinale) kicks off its 16th edition from Thursday, 1 June until Sunday, 4 June 2023 bringing together a diverse group of acclaimed filmmakers and prominent professionals from the film, entertainment, and creative industries to celebrate cinema.
Balinale showcases the finest Indonesian and International movies.
Over our 4-day event will present forty-five films from thirteen countries at Park23 Creative Hub Cinema Xxi, Tuban Kuta, Bali. Several of these films are world, Asian, and international premieres. Opening Balinale is A Guilty Conscience directed by Jack Ng. actor, Dee Ho, will be at the festival to present the film.
Notable films include Sisu from Finland, directed by Jalmari Helander; Klondike from Ukraine, directed by Maryna Er Gorbach; Where the Wind Blows from Hong Kong, directed by Philip Yung; and Women Talking from the United States, directed by Sarah Polley.
In competition 2023
In 2023, the festival's juried competition will present awards in several artistic and technical categories: Narrative Features,...
Balinale showcases the finest Indonesian and International movies.
Over our 4-day event will present forty-five films from thirteen countries at Park23 Creative Hub Cinema Xxi, Tuban Kuta, Bali. Several of these films are world, Asian, and international premieres. Opening Balinale is A Guilty Conscience directed by Jack Ng. actor, Dee Ho, will be at the festival to present the film.
Notable films include Sisu from Finland, directed by Jalmari Helander; Klondike from Ukraine, directed by Maryna Er Gorbach; Where the Wind Blows from Hong Kong, directed by Philip Yung; and Women Talking from the United States, directed by Sarah Polley.
In competition 2023
In 2023, the festival's juried competition will present awards in several artistic and technical categories: Narrative Features,...
- 6/1/2023
- by Rhythm Zaveri
- AsianMoviePulse
Distribution
Anthony Lapaglia‘s upcoming factual series “The Black Hand” is set to be distributed internationally by eOne.
The three-part series will explore Australia’s Italian community, looking at the difficulties they face, their politics, the threat of war and the mafia. According to the series synopsis, The Black Hand is the name for a gang of Italian criminals in Australia.
Alan Erson, Lapaglia, Michael Tear exec produce. Adam Grossetti and Kate Pappas produce. “The Black Hand” is directed by Kriv Stenders and written by Grossetti, Stenders and Anya Beyersdorf.
The series was produced by Wildbear Entertainment for ABC in Australia. The deal with eOne excludes Australia and Scandinavia.
“The Black Hand is truly the definition of premium factual,” said Kate Cundall, eOne’s VP for acquisitions. “We’re very excited about the opportunity to take to market a hugely popular genre like true crime with some amazing auspicious.”
***
Meanwhile,...
Anthony Lapaglia‘s upcoming factual series “The Black Hand” is set to be distributed internationally by eOne.
The three-part series will explore Australia’s Italian community, looking at the difficulties they face, their politics, the threat of war and the mafia. According to the series synopsis, The Black Hand is the name for a gang of Italian criminals in Australia.
Alan Erson, Lapaglia, Michael Tear exec produce. Adam Grossetti and Kate Pappas produce. “The Black Hand” is directed by Kriv Stenders and written by Grossetti, Stenders and Anya Beyersdorf.
The series was produced by Wildbear Entertainment for ABC in Australia. The deal with eOne excludes Australia and Scandinavia.
“The Black Hand is truly the definition of premium factual,” said Kate Cundall, eOne’s VP for acquisitions. “We’re very excited about the opportunity to take to market a hugely popular genre like true crime with some amazing auspicious.”
***
Meanwhile,...
- 5/31/2023
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
The move is part of plans to expand its footprint in the Asia Pacific region.
Hong Kong-based One Cool Film Production has opened a new operation in Malaysia, with The Locksmith as its first feature filmed in the country and La Luna as its first Singapore-Malaysia co-production.
The new venture was officially launched on April 20 by Sam Kan, director of One Cool Film Malaysia, and But Tang, Hong Kong-based executive director of One Cool Film Production. The move is in line with the company’s plans to expand its footprint in the Asia Pacific region.
Its first made-in-Malaysia feature is suspense action thriller The Locksmith,...
Hong Kong-based One Cool Film Production has opened a new operation in Malaysia, with The Locksmith as its first feature filmed in the country and La Luna as its first Singapore-Malaysia co-production.
The new venture was officially launched on April 20 by Sam Kan, director of One Cool Film Malaysia, and But Tang, Hong Kong-based executive director of One Cool Film Production. The move is in line with the company’s plans to expand its footprint in the Asia Pacific region.
Its first made-in-Malaysia feature is suspense action thriller The Locksmith,...
- 5/11/2023
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
Johnnie To, Watanabe Hirobumi and Jang Sun-woo set to attend.
The Far East Film Festival (Feff), held in the Italian town of Udine, has revealed the full line-up for its landmark 25th edition, which is set to include appearances from filmmakers Johnnie To, Watanabe Hirobumi and Jang Sun-woo.
Running April 21-29, the festival will open with a double bill: He Shuming’s Ajoomma, the first co-production between Singapore and South Korea; and black comedy Bad Education by Taiwan’s Giddens Ko. It will close with Zhang Yimou’s Chinese blockbuster Full River Red.
The festival will screen 78 Asian films from 14 countries,...
The Far East Film Festival (Feff), held in the Italian town of Udine, has revealed the full line-up for its landmark 25th edition, which is set to include appearances from filmmakers Johnnie To, Watanabe Hirobumi and Jang Sun-woo.
Running April 21-29, the festival will open with a double bill: He Shuming’s Ajoomma, the first co-production between Singapore and South Korea; and black comedy Bad Education by Taiwan’s Giddens Ko. It will close with Zhang Yimou’s Chinese blockbuster Full River Red.
The festival will screen 78 Asian films from 14 countries,...
- 4/6/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Italy’s Far East Film Festival unveiled a power-packed lineup Wednesday for its 25th anniversary edition. The largest cinema event in Europe specializing in popular moviemaking from Asia, Feff will open April 21 with an inspired double bill, He Shuming’s hit Korea-Singapore co-production Ajoomma followed by first-time Taiwanese director Kai Ko’s black comedy Bad Education. And on April 29, the curtain will come down on the festival with the Italy premiere of legendary Chinese director Zhang Yimou’s latest blockbuster, Full River Red. Between those dates, the festival will screen 78 Asian films from 14 countries, including nine world premieres.
The organizers of Feff, founded in 1999 in the picturesque northern Italian city of Udine by festival pioneers Sabrina Baracetti and Thomas Bertacche, say the 2023 selection “aims to showcase the immense complexity of Asia more than ever before.” The lineup indeed presents a compelling snapshot of a wildly diverse content’s commercial cinema in flux.
The organizers of Feff, founded in 1999 in the picturesque northern Italian city of Udine by festival pioneers Sabrina Baracetti and Thomas Bertacche, say the 2023 selection “aims to showcase the immense complexity of Asia more than ever before.” The lineup indeed presents a compelling snapshot of a wildly diverse content’s commercial cinema in flux.
- 4/6/2023
- by Patrick Brzeski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Udine Far East Film Festival is back with a record line-up to celebrate its 25th edition. 78 films, 14 countries, 9 world premieres – Golden Mulberry for Lifetime Achievement to Baisho Chieko – On the red carpet also Johnnie To, Watanabe Hirobumi and Jang Sun-woo.
If there are 78 films (record number!) and they come from 14 countries, it should certainly be emphasized that the line-up includes 15 women directors and 12 newcomers. In brief, the 2023 selection aims to restore great complexity more than ever of Asia. A selection that combines the recent past with today, seamlessly, among different communities, different expectations and choices of life, languages and dialects, politics, religions, habits, inclinations, beliefs, myths and legends and, last but not least, different gender identities. A selection that tells in real time how the cinematography of East and Southeast Asia have re-emerged from the sad period of the pandemic, not all in the same way, and not all with the same results.
If there are 78 films (record number!) and they come from 14 countries, it should certainly be emphasized that the line-up includes 15 women directors and 12 newcomers. In brief, the 2023 selection aims to restore great complexity more than ever of Asia. A selection that combines the recent past with today, seamlessly, among different communities, different expectations and choices of life, languages and dialects, politics, religions, habits, inclinations, beliefs, myths and legends and, last but not least, different gender identities. A selection that tells in real time how the cinematography of East and Southeast Asia have re-emerged from the sad period of the pandemic, not all in the same way, and not all with the same results.
- 4/5/2023
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
The Far East Film Festival in Italy’s Udine will open with a double bill of He Shuming’s “Ajoomma” and Kai Ko’s “Bad Education.” It will close with Zhang Yimou’s blockbuster period epic “Full River Red.”
In between, the festival will showcase a stunning 78-title array of commercial and art-house films from across East Asia. Operating according to a motto of diversity –implying cultural asymmetries and artistic multiplicities – the 25th edition of the festival will run April 21-29.
Organizers say that their selection “shows in real time how the cinemas of East and Southeast Asia have re-emerged from the gruelling period of the pandemic, not all in the same way and not all with the same results.”
They point to the impact of Covid, politics and emigration from Hong Kong, and the recent resurgence of Cantonese-language cinema.
Similarly, Udine’s organizers note the recent box office struggles of South Korean cinema,...
In between, the festival will showcase a stunning 78-title array of commercial and art-house films from across East Asia. Operating according to a motto of diversity –implying cultural asymmetries and artistic multiplicities – the 25th edition of the festival will run April 21-29.
Organizers say that their selection “shows in real time how the cinemas of East and Southeast Asia have re-emerged from the gruelling period of the pandemic, not all in the same way and not all with the same results.”
They point to the impact of Covid, politics and emigration from Hong Kong, and the recent resurgence of Cantonese-language cinema.
Similarly, Udine’s organizers note the recent box office struggles of South Korean cinema,...
- 4/5/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Chicago – Season 16 of the Asian Pop Up Cinema (Apuc) continues with the Hong Kong Cinema Showcase, with ‘A Guilty Conscience’ featuring appearances by an actress and director.
The appearance is on Friday, March 31st (7pm), and ‘A Guilty Conscience’ is the first film in Hong Kong history to pass the $100 million mark locally in country. The evening will feature an honor for actress Renci Yeung with Apuc’s Bright Star Award and will also have director Jack Ng Wai Lun at the screening. They talked to HollywoodChicago.com below.
On April 1st (2;30pm), director Ka Sing Fung will represent the North American premiere of his film “Lost Love.” Both screenings are at AMC New City in Chicago, and will feature Q&As moderated by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com. Click Hong Kong for location and timing details, including for the rest of the films in the series, including “The Sparring Partner,...
The appearance is on Friday, March 31st (7pm), and ‘A Guilty Conscience’ is the first film in Hong Kong history to pass the $100 million mark locally in country. The evening will feature an honor for actress Renci Yeung with Apuc’s Bright Star Award and will also have director Jack Ng Wai Lun at the screening. They talked to HollywoodChicago.com below.
On April 1st (2;30pm), director Ka Sing Fung will represent the North American premiere of his film “Lost Love.” Both screenings are at AMC New City in Chicago, and will feature Q&As moderated by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com. Click Hong Kong for location and timing details, including for the rest of the films in the series, including “The Sparring Partner,...
- 3/30/2023
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Kowloon Walled City — one of Hong Kong’s most famous landmarks, or infamous trouble spots, depending on your point of view — fell prey to the developers’ bulldozer 30 years ago. But it remains an icon of the territory’s gritty spirit and is being painstakingly re-created for action thriller feature “Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In.”
The film is a beacon for how Hong Kong cinema is now evolving. Directed by hot-shot Soi Cheang, whose “Mad Fate” recently played in Berlin and is set for imminent local release, “Twilight” boasts leading stars Louis Koo, Sammo Hung and Richie Jen, plus emerging talents Philip Ng, Raymond Lau and Terrance Lau.
The film’s Hk$300 million ($39 million) budget makes it one of the most expensive Hong Kong productions of all time. But principal backer Media Asia is sparing no expense promoting the title. The company’s corporate booth at the FilMart rights market...
The film is a beacon for how Hong Kong cinema is now evolving. Directed by hot-shot Soi Cheang, whose “Mad Fate” recently played in Berlin and is set for imminent local release, “Twilight” boasts leading stars Louis Koo, Sammo Hung and Richie Jen, plus emerging talents Philip Ng, Raymond Lau and Terrance Lau.
The film’s Hk$300 million ($39 million) budget makes it one of the most expensive Hong Kong productions of all time. But principal backer Media Asia is sparing no expense promoting the title. The company’s corporate booth at the FilMart rights market...
- 3/14/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
“Post-Truth,” a Chinese comedy film about a cemetery plot salesman trying to salvage his reputation in the face of online assaults, topped the cinema box office in mainland China over the weekend, ahead of another new release title “Revival.”
Data from consultancy Artisan Gateway showed that “Post-Truth” earned $17.0 million between Friday and Sunday. Including preview, it has a cumulative of $20.3 million. Crime drama, “Revival” earned $10.3 million over the weekend and has a running total of $11.4 million including previews.
The two newcomers dominated the box office and relegated Hong Kong-produced courtroom drama “A Guilty Conscience” to a distant third place. “Guilty” took $2.3 million (RMB15.8 million) for a cumulative of $23 million since releasing on Feb. 24.
The remaining places in the top five continued to be occupied by films that released at Chinese New Year in January. “The Wandering Earth 2” took RMB15.7 million (nearly $2.3 million) for a cumulative of $598 million (RMB4.00 billion...
Data from consultancy Artisan Gateway showed that “Post-Truth” earned $17.0 million between Friday and Sunday. Including preview, it has a cumulative of $20.3 million. Crime drama, “Revival” earned $10.3 million over the weekend and has a running total of $11.4 million including previews.
The two newcomers dominated the box office and relegated Hong Kong-produced courtroom drama “A Guilty Conscience” to a distant third place. “Guilty” took $2.3 million (RMB15.8 million) for a cumulative of $23 million since releasing on Feb. 24.
The remaining places in the top five continued to be occupied by films that released at Chinese New Year in January. “The Wandering Earth 2” took RMB15.7 million (nearly $2.3 million) for a cumulative of $598 million (RMB4.00 billion...
- 3/13/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
A world away from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday night, industry leaders from across the Asian movie business were keeping regular tabs on the 95th Academy Awards ceremony via their phones at Hong Kong Filmart, the Eastern Hemisphere’s largest film trade show, eagerly awaiting news of whether regional screen legend Michelle Yeoh would make history as the first woman of Asian descent to win a best actress Oscar.
News of Yeoh’s triumph landed in Southern China at roughly 11 a.m. local time, sending the Malaysian and Hong Kong industry executives at Filmart into a private fits of celebration. Yeoh, who is Malaysian of Chinese descent, got her start during the golden era of the Hong Kong film industry in the 1980s and 1990s, and both Hong Kong and Malaysia have laid claim to her — sometimes contentiously — as a hometown hero. But on Monday, both industries...
News of Yeoh’s triumph landed in Southern China at roughly 11 a.m. local time, sending the Malaysian and Hong Kong industry executives at Filmart into a private fits of celebration. Yeoh, who is Malaysian of Chinese descent, got her start during the golden era of the Hong Kong film industry in the 1980s and 1990s, and both Hong Kong and Malaysia have laid claim to her — sometimes contentiously — as a hometown hero. But on Monday, both industries...
- 3/13/2023
- by Patrick Brzeski and Mathew Scott
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hong Kong’s Filmart content market has for 27 years positioned itself as both the largest of its kind in Asia and the most influential, what with its hundreds of exhibitors from the far reaches of the region and its seminars which seek to chart the course of the industry’s future.
But for three years — like most of the pandemic-hit world — Filmart lay mostly dormant, in a physical sense at least, forced online due to circumstance and safety almost at the very moment in 2020 that Bong Joon-ho’s phenomenal Oscars success with the dark, dystopian comedy Parasitehad fixed the global industry’s focus on Asian storytelling, and Asian talent.
But this week – from March 13-16– Filmart returns to its home at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and its 27th edition is again appearing in physical form, with guests converging over the past few days, and (almost) all signs...
But for three years — like most of the pandemic-hit world — Filmart lay mostly dormant, in a physical sense at least, forced online due to circumstance and safety almost at the very moment in 2020 that Bong Joon-ho’s phenomenal Oscars success with the dark, dystopian comedy Parasitehad fixed the global industry’s focus on Asian storytelling, and Asian talent.
But this week – from March 13-16– Filmart returns to its home at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and its 27th edition is again appearing in physical form, with guests converging over the past few days, and (almost) all signs...
- 3/12/2023
- by Mathew Scott
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
“Cyber Heist,” a crime thriller directed by Hong Kong’s Wong Hing-fan (“I’m Livin’ It”) and scripted by Soi Cheang (aka Cheang Pou Soi), took the top spot at the mainland Chinese box office over the weekend.
It earned a very modest $6.2 million, according to data from consultancy Artisan Gateway. But that was enough to win on the quietest weekend since January’s Lunar New Year holiday season.
“Cyber Heist” stars Aaron Kwok as a cyber security engineer who develops a state-of-the-art firewall that is capable of fending off online attacks against the global financial system. But he does not realize that in doing so he has stepped into a minefield that is even more dangerous. The picture also stars Lam Ka-tun and Simon Yam.
The film overtook the previous weekend’s winner “A Guilty Conscience,” which earned $5.1 million in its second frame. The courtroom drama, which is now...
It earned a very modest $6.2 million, according to data from consultancy Artisan Gateway. But that was enough to win on the quietest weekend since January’s Lunar New Year holiday season.
“Cyber Heist” stars Aaron Kwok as a cyber security engineer who develops a state-of-the-art firewall that is capable of fending off online attacks against the global financial system. But he does not realize that in doing so he has stepped into a minefield that is even more dangerous. The picture also stars Lam Ka-tun and Simon Yam.
The film overtook the previous weekend’s winner “A Guilty Conscience,” which earned $5.1 million in its second frame. The courtroom drama, which is now...
- 3/6/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Hong Kong High
Already the highest grossing local film in its home market, courtroom drama, “A Guilty Conscience” has broken into Hong Kong’s all-time top ten box office ranking with a cumulative of Hk$107 million ($13.7 million). Data from Hong Kong Box Office Ltd. shows the film achieving the feat after just 41 days in cinemas and coming within Hk$1 million of overtaking “Top Gun: Maverick.” The data firm noted that the last time a Hong Kong film got this far was with fantasy-action-comedy “Kung Fu Hustle” in 2004. Since then, it has been overtaken by a fleet of Hollywood titles. Hong Hong’s current top ten is headed by “Avengers: Endgame” and includes six Marvel movies, the two “Avatar” titles and “Titanic.”
Streamer Encourages Churn
With its shares buoyed by recent more positive results, Chinese video streamer iQiyi is returning to the capital markets – again. The Nasdaq-listed company is issuing $600 million...
Already the highest grossing local film in its home market, courtroom drama, “A Guilty Conscience” has broken into Hong Kong’s all-time top ten box office ranking with a cumulative of Hk$107 million ($13.7 million). Data from Hong Kong Box Office Ltd. shows the film achieving the feat after just 41 days in cinemas and coming within Hk$1 million of overtaking “Top Gun: Maverick.” The data firm noted that the last time a Hong Kong film got this far was with fantasy-action-comedy “Kung Fu Hustle” in 2004. Since then, it has been overtaken by a fleet of Hollywood titles. Hong Hong’s current top ten is headed by “Avengers: Endgame” and includes six Marvel movies, the two “Avatar” titles and “Titanic.”
Streamer Encourages Churn
With its shares buoyed by recent more positive results, Chinese video streamer iQiyi is returning to the capital markets – again. The Nasdaq-listed company is issuing $600 million...
- 3/3/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
At previous in-person editions of Filmart, Hong Kong’s major film companies, including Edko Films, Emperor Motion Pictures (Emp), One Cool Group, Universe Films and Media Asia, always anchored the trade show floor with huge, elaborate booths promoting the latest Hong Kong films, animation and TV series.
Despite a difficult few years, during which they’ve had to navigate Covid-related cinema closures, stringent travel restrictions and Hong Kong’s political upheaval, all these companies and more are re-erecting their stalls at the first physical edition of Filmart in three years, and even have some good news to share.
Just last week, Edko Films’ legal drama A Guilty Conscience, starring Dayo Wong as a sharp-tongued barrister defending a single mother against ruthless tycoons, became the first Hong Kong film ever to gross more than Hk$100M (US$12.7M) at the local box office. The film is also currently topping the mainland China box office,...
Despite a difficult few years, during which they’ve had to navigate Covid-related cinema closures, stringent travel restrictions and Hong Kong’s political upheaval, all these companies and more are re-erecting their stalls at the first physical edition of Filmart in three years, and even have some good news to share.
Just last week, Edko Films’ legal drama A Guilty Conscience, starring Dayo Wong as a sharp-tongued barrister defending a single mother against ruthless tycoons, became the first Hong Kong film ever to gross more than Hk$100M (US$12.7M) at the local box office. The film is also currently topping the mainland China box office,...
- 3/3/2023
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
Consent, complexity and consistency defined Hong Kong cinema’s rather interesting start to 2023. First, the local box office continues to see impressive returns, which while still may not be the same as pre-pandemic levels, shows sustained interest from moviegoers. Box-office revenues reached over $50 million over the Lunar New Year, as Variety reported, with A Guilty Conscience, the courtroom drama directed by Wai Lun-Ng becoming the highest-grossing Hong Kong film of all time, earning over Hkd 82 million ($10 million). It’s also the awards season, with nominees to the 41st Hong Kong Film Awards announced in early February. One of those nominated for Best Film, the documentary To My Nineteen-Year-Old-Self, withdrew from the race, however, though directors Mabel Cheung and William Kwok Wai-lun are still in the running for best director.…...
- 3/1/2023
- by Purple Romero
- IONCINEMA.com
Disney and Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, starring Paul Rudd, fell to third place at China’s theatrical box office in its second weekend on local screens, earning just $7 million. Hong Kong courtroom thriller A Guilty Conscience, meanwhile, topped the charts with an $8.5 million opening, according to box office tracker Artisan Gateway. And sci-fi blockbuster The Wandering Earth 2, which has been in cinemas since China’s Lunar New Year holiday over a month ago, climbed back into second place with an $7.4 million haul, lifting its total to $568 million.
Chinese viewers have rewarded Ant-Man 3 with strong social scores — 8.8 on Maoyan, 8.7 at Alibaba’s Taopiaopiao and 6.1 on Douban — but its earnings are coming in far below the first two titles in the franchise. After nine days in release, Ant-Man 3 had earned $31.4 million. Maoyan currently projects the film to finish with a total of around $40 million. The original...
Chinese viewers have rewarded Ant-Man 3 with strong social scores — 8.8 on Maoyan, 8.7 at Alibaba’s Taopiaopiao and 6.1 on Douban — but its earnings are coming in far below the first two titles in the franchise. After nine days in release, Ant-Man 3 had earned $31.4 million. Maoyan currently projects the film to finish with a total of around $40 million. The original...
- 2/27/2023
- by Patrick Brzeski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hong Kong courtroom drama film “A Guilty Conscience” edged aside Chinese and Hollywood tentpole films to top the mainland China box office in its opening weekend.
According to data from consultancy service Artisan Gateway, the film earned $8.5 million (RMB58.4 million) in its opening three days between Friday and Sunday.
“The Wandering Earth 2,” which has been in cinemas for over a month, earned $7.4 million to elevate its cumulative total to $568 million.
“Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” which opened on top a week earlier, collected $7.0 million, giving it a 10-day cumulative of $31.4 million.
Zhang Yimou’s “Full River Red” placed fourth with $5.5 million over its sixth weekend. Its cumulative since Jan. 22 now stands at $648 million.
Bring up fifth place was another Lunar New Year release, “Boonie Bears: Guardian Code” with $3.9 million over the weekend, good for a cumulative of $207 million.
The weekend total box office was a modest $39.6 million, the smallest...
According to data from consultancy service Artisan Gateway, the film earned $8.5 million (RMB58.4 million) in its opening three days between Friday and Sunday.
“The Wandering Earth 2,” which has been in cinemas for over a month, earned $7.4 million to elevate its cumulative total to $568 million.
“Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania,” which opened on top a week earlier, collected $7.0 million, giving it a 10-day cumulative of $31.4 million.
Zhang Yimou’s “Full River Red” placed fourth with $5.5 million over its sixth weekend. Its cumulative since Jan. 22 now stands at $648 million.
Bring up fifth place was another Lunar New Year release, “Boonie Bears: Guardian Code” with $3.9 million over the weekend, good for a cumulative of $207 million.
The weekend total box office was a modest $39.6 million, the smallest...
- 2/27/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Milestone has only previously been surpassed by Hollywood blockbusters.
Courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience has made history at the Hong Kong box office as the first local film ever to reach Hk$100m ($12.75m), a figure only previously achieved by Hollywood tentpoles.
The feature from first-time director Jack Ng reached the milestone on February 21, just 32 days after its release on January 21 – the eve of Chinese New Year.
Only a handful of Hollywood films have previously hit Hk$100m at the Hong Kong box office, with recent titles including Top Gun: Maverick and Avatar: The Way Of Water. Others include Marvel...
Courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience has made history at the Hong Kong box office as the first local film ever to reach Hk$100m ($12.75m), a figure only previously achieved by Hollywood tentpoles.
The feature from first-time director Jack Ng reached the milestone on February 21, just 32 days after its release on January 21 – the eve of Chinese New Year.
Only a handful of Hollywood films have previously hit Hk$100m at the Hong Kong box office, with recent titles including Top Gun: Maverick and Avatar: The Way Of Water. Others include Marvel...
- 2/23/2023
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
Spring has arrived.
For the Hong Kong film industry, the harsh three-year-long winter of the Covid era — with multiplexes forced to close for extended periods, industry professionals losing their livelihoods, and an indifferent administration that didn’t deign to lift a finger to help this once-mighty cultural industry that put the auteurs from the tiny former colony into the annals of global cinematic history — has finally come to an end.
Despite cinemas reopening their doors only in April 2022, two Hong Kong-made films released in late 2022, Warriors of Future and Table for Six, have become the top-grossing local productions of all time, taking in 10.5 million and 10 million in Hong Kong, respectively. And a third, A Guilty Conscience, released this January, is now the highest-earning Hong Kong film ever, grossing 11 million in its first three weeks of release. Hongkongers have rediscovered their love for homegrown films that tell stories they can relate to,...
For the Hong Kong film industry, the harsh three-year-long winter of the Covid era — with multiplexes forced to close for extended periods, industry professionals losing their livelihoods, and an indifferent administration that didn’t deign to lift a finger to help this once-mighty cultural industry that put the auteurs from the tiny former colony into the annals of global cinematic history — has finally come to an end.
Despite cinemas reopening their doors only in April 2022, two Hong Kong-made films released in late 2022, Warriors of Future and Table for Six, have become the top-grossing local productions of all time, taking in 10.5 million and 10 million in Hong Kong, respectively. And a third, A Guilty Conscience, released this January, is now the highest-earning Hong Kong film ever, grossing 11 million in its first three weeks of release. Hongkongers have rediscovered their love for homegrown films that tell stories they can relate to,...
- 2/16/2023
- by Karen Chu
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
An unusual five films picked up ten or more nominations for the Hong Kong Film Awards, with court room drama, “The Sparring Partner” picking up 16. But the event was partially overshadowed by a row over “To My Nineteen-Year-Old Self,” a documentary feature.
“To My Nineteen-Year-Old Self” is a warm portrait of six girls at a Hong Kong school that was made over a period of ten years. It was co-directed by the veteran Mabel Cheung, who has tackled thorny historical subjects in “The Soong Sisters,” and was producer of 2010 hit “Echoes of the Rainbow,” a nostalgic elegy to old Hong Kong.
The film played at the Hong Kong International Film Festival in August last year and was released theatrically earlier this year. But it was withdrawn from the city’s cinemas this week after one of the youngsters featured in the film published a complaint in a newspaper, saying that...
“To My Nineteen-Year-Old Self” is a warm portrait of six girls at a Hong Kong school that was made over a period of ten years. It was co-directed by the veteran Mabel Cheung, who has tackled thorny historical subjects in “The Soong Sisters,” and was producer of 2010 hit “Echoes of the Rainbow,” a nostalgic elegy to old Hong Kong.
The film played at the Hong Kong International Film Festival in August last year and was released theatrically earlier this year. But it was withdrawn from the city’s cinemas this week after one of the youngsters featured in the film published a complaint in a newspaper, saying that...
- 2/10/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
‘My Nineteen-Year-Old Self’ withdrawn over public screening consent issues.
Courtroom drama The Sparring Partner has received 16 nominations for the 41st Hong Kong Film Awards, which saw the last-minute withdrawal of Mabel Cheung’s documentary To My Nineteen-Year-Old Self.
The Sparring Partner, which marks the feature directorial debut of Ho Cheuk Tin, leads the pack with nominations in all but three categories. Based on the true story of a gruesome double murder case, its nods include best film, best director and five nominations for performers including lead actors Mak Pui Tung and Yeung Wai Lun. The film has become Hong Kong...
Courtroom drama The Sparring Partner has received 16 nominations for the 41st Hong Kong Film Awards, which saw the last-minute withdrawal of Mabel Cheung’s documentary To My Nineteen-Year-Old Self.
The Sparring Partner, which marks the feature directorial debut of Ho Cheuk Tin, leads the pack with nominations in all but three categories. Based on the true story of a gruesome double murder case, its nods include best film, best director and five nominations for performers including lead actors Mak Pui Tung and Yeung Wai Lun. The film has become Hong Kong...
- 2/9/2023
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
Local film ‘Everything Under Control’ also performed strongly.
Box office in Hong Kong continued to show signs of recovery over Chinese New Year, with local films A Guilty Conscience and Everything Under Control leading the charge.
From January 21-24, total box office in Hong Kong reached 6.5m (HK50.86m), up 18.6 on the same Chinese New Year period in 2020 but still down 17.3 on pre-pandemic 2019.
Courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience was comfortably out front, accounting for almost half the total box office, taking 3.13m (HK24.47m) from its first four days of release. Its cumulative box office as of January 25 stood at...
Box office in Hong Kong continued to show signs of recovery over Chinese New Year, with local films A Guilty Conscience and Everything Under Control leading the charge.
From January 21-24, total box office in Hong Kong reached 6.5m (HK50.86m), up 18.6 on the same Chinese New Year period in 2020 but still down 17.3 on pre-pandemic 2019.
Courtroom drama A Guilty Conscience was comfortably out front, accounting for almost half the total box office, taking 3.13m (HK24.47m) from its first four days of release. Its cumulative box office as of January 25 stood at...
- 1/26/2023
- by Silvia Wong
- ScreenDaily
Cinema box office in Hong Kong rebounded over the recent Chinese New Year holiday period. They failed to recover to pre-pandemic levels, but local titles performed strongly.
Data from Hong Kong Box Office Limited showed gross revenues between Saturday and Tuesday amounted to HK50.89 million (6.52 million). That is a 19 improvement on the equivalent four-day period in 2020, when Covid was just starting to arrive in the city and revenues fell to HK42.89 million (5.50 million). But the number was still 17 below the 2019 figure of HK61.47 million (7.88 million).
Cinemas in the territory were closed during Lunar New Year holidays in both 2021 and 2022 due to the government’s anti-covid measures.
Unlike mainland China, Hong Kong has no film import quotas and does not operate blackout periods when foreign films cannot be released. The holiday period chart for Hong Kong contains a mix of local, U.S. and Japanese and none of the films that...
Data from Hong Kong Box Office Limited showed gross revenues between Saturday and Tuesday amounted to HK50.89 million (6.52 million). That is a 19 improvement on the equivalent four-day period in 2020, when Covid was just starting to arrive in the city and revenues fell to HK42.89 million (5.50 million). But the number was still 17 below the 2019 figure of HK61.47 million (7.88 million).
Cinemas in the territory were closed during Lunar New Year holidays in both 2021 and 2022 due to the government’s anti-covid measures.
Unlike mainland China, Hong Kong has no film import quotas and does not operate blackout periods when foreign films cannot be released. The holiday period chart for Hong Kong contains a mix of local, U.S. and Japanese and none of the films that...
- 1/26/2023
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
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