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The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Film Development Council:
The local premiere of a new film financed by the Film Development Fund (FDF), "The Merger", will be held this evening (September 13). The production budget for the film was around $9.75 million, with government finance amounting to about $1.95 million.
The film, directed by Jimmy Luk and starring Frankie Lam, Patrick Tam, Rachel Lam and Kathy Tong, seeks to explore the nature of love as well as loving feelings towards Hong Kong through depicting a forbidden love story between a teacher and a student.
The film has won 27 international awards at various overseas film competitions, including the Noida International Film Festival in India; the North Hollywood Cinefest, the Depth of Field International Film Festival Competition, the Accolade Global Film Competition and the IndieFEST Film Awards in the US; and the Amsterdam Film Festival in the Netherlands.
The Secretary-General of the Hong Kong Film Development Council, Mr Wellington Fung, said, "The production crew of the film 'The Merger' are mostly veterans of the local television industry. The film has won many awards internationally, which is indeed recognition of their talent for the big screen.
"The FDF will continue to finance film projects that engage up-and-coming filmmakers to provide more opportunities for young talents to show their flair and increase the number of local film productions."
In May 2015, the Government further injected $200 million into the FDF to boost the volume of local film production and nurture film talent. Since 2007, 32 applications have been approved for financing under the fund, involving total funding of about $88.02 million.
Ends/Sunday, September 13, 2015
Issued at HKT 11:01
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