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ATV has acquired hundreds of Hong Kong films of different genres for television broadcast since its inauguration in 1957 as "Rediffusion Television". Watching "Cantonese oldies" on television was a popular form of free or inexpensive entertainment for years and the experience has become part of the collective memory of several generations.
To show its ardent support for film heritage preservation, ATV has transferred storage of around 400 prints from its collection to the Hong Kong Film Archive (HKFA) for permanent preservation and research.
Another 300 or so prints will be handed over as well once the film owners are reached and their consent has been obtained.
The ATV Film Library Handover Ceremony was held today (July 8) at the HKFA with the Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Raymond Young Lap-moon, and the Chief Executive Officer of ATV, Miss Nancy Hu, as the officiating guests.
Film stars Ms Nam Hung, Ms Nina Paw Hee-ching, Mr Lo Hoi-pang, Mr Philip Keung Ho-men, Mr Lawrence Lau Shek-yin, and the winners of the singing contest "Asian Million Star 2", Mr Alan Peng Yuan-yang, Ms Cathy Cheng Yuen-ying and Mr Sunny Yu Tin-long, also attended the ceremony.
This valuable collection includes Cantonese, Mandarin and Chaozhou dialect films from the 1940s to the 1990s, with classics such as "The Judge Goes to Pieces" (1948), "A Star of Mischief is Born" (1951), "How Wong Fei-hung Set Fire to Dashatou" (1956), "She Married an Overseas Chinese" (1957), "Three Trials of the Number One Scholar's Wife" (1958), "My Intimate Partners" (1960), "He is a Rare and Passionate Lover" (1962), "The Dragon and the Phoenix" (1963), "The Young Swordsman Lung Kim Fei" (1964), "The Flag of Death" (1965), "Dragon Inn" (1967) and "Incredible Rumour" (1968).
Since its establishment, the HKFA has received staunch support from individuals, the film industry and the public. Its collection comprises over 9,000 films and about 1,000,000 film-related items. The films from the ATV library are distinguished not only by the large number of titles but also the wide variety of genres. The handover is an important milestone in the preservation of Hong Kong's film heritage.
Ends/Thursday, July 8, 2010
Issued at HKT 20:10
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