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The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Brussels (HKETO,
Brussels) is staging a Hong Kong film festival in Malta for the first time, with the support of the Maltese Government.
The Hong Kong Film Panorama, which presents a selection of Hong Kong's latest films and tours Europe every year at the initiative of HKETO, Brussels, opened at the St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity yesterday (April 12, Maltese time).
Speaking at the opening, Deputy Representative for Hong Kong Economic and Trade Affairs to the European Union, Ms Wong Yuet-wah, said that cinema is very close to the hearts of Hong Kong people and forms an important part of our city's history and culture. With just seven million inhabitants, Hong Kong is among the world's largest film exporters and producers per capita, with 70 films made in 2009.
With the rise of independent filmmakers, films with more intricate plots and more complex characterisation now thrive alongside traditional action movies. Keenly aware of the highly competitive nature of the film industry, the Hong Kong SAR Government has implemented a series of measures to help the industry and to nurture new talent by financing small to medium-budget films. The results were encouraging.
"Our Film Development Fund has supported 14 films since it was in place in October 2007. One of them, Alex Law's 'Echoes of the Rainbow', which is currently top of the box office in Hong Kong, recently won the Crystal Bear for Best Film at the Berlinale 2010," Ms Wong said. "The most important event of the year for our entertainment industry is taking place at this very moment in Hong Kong until April 18," Ms Wong noted, referring to the Hong Kong Entertainment Expo with its nine spectacular events covering a global mix of film, TV, music and digital
entertainment. "However you do not need to go to Hong Kong to sample Hong Kong films. We have brought them to Malta."
For the Hong Kong Film Panorama in Malta from April 12 to 19 inclusive, 12 films selected for the 2009-2010 European tour with the help of the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society will be shown. They are Law Wing-cheong's thriller "Tactical Unit – Comrades in Arms", Johnnie To's "Sparrow", Heiward Mak's coming of age drama "High Noon", Herman Yan's non-fiction film "True Women for Sale", Derek Kwok's police drama "The Moss", Lawrence Lau's youth drama "City without Baseball", and Angie Chan's "This Darling Life", an original look at how people relate to their pets. In addition to these recent films, there will be a tribute to iconic director Tsui Hark with his films "Once Upon
a Time in China (Parts I, II and III)", "Shanghai Blues" and "Legend of Zu".
Malta is the eighth and penultimate stop on the 2009-2010 Hong Kong Film Panorama's European tour, after Antwerp, Brussels, Amsterdam, Lisbon, Athens, Madrid and Florence. The final stop for this season's edition of the film festival will be in Barcelona, where it will be held from April 23 to 30 inclusive.
Ends/Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Issued at HKT 11:25
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