The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in San Francisco (HKETO San Francisco) partnered with CAAMFest, the world's largest showcase for new Asian American and Asian film, food and music programmes, for a special Hong Kong Cinema Showcase in its 2023 edition, held from May 11 to 21 (San Francisco time). The Festival presents over 100 works annually in San Francisco and Oakland. 

     This year, the Hong Kong Cinema Showcase featured "Twelve Days", a romantic dramedy written and directed by acclaimed Hong Kong filmmaker Aubrey Lam and starring Stephy Tang and Edward Ma. With support from HKETO San Francisco, CAAMFest invited Lam from Hong Kong to attend the movie screening at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on May 19 (San Francisco time), as well as a pre-screening reception on the same day, to enhance cultural exchanges and dialogues. 

     Delivering remarks at the reception, the Director of HKETO San Francisco, Ms Jacko Tsang, expressed gratitude to the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) for another year of successful collaboration. She said, "As a long-term partner of CAAMFest, we are excited to see the festival returning to fully in-person for the first time since 2019, with an exciting programme that celebrates the rich and diverse culture of Asian Americans not only through films, but also music and food. CAAMFest 2023 is about 'A Call to Gather', and it is our honour to be part of the community in this meaningful festival."

     Ms Tsang continued, "The Hong Kong Government is determined to inject new power into Hong Kong Cinema by implementing new measures under the Film Development Fund. One of the new measures is the Hong Kong-Asian Film Collaboration Funding Scheme, which will subsidise film projects co-produced by filmmakers from Hong Kong and Asian countries. The objective is to enhance exposure of Hong Kong films in Asian and international markets and to achieve in-depth exchanges and mutual learning."

      "Another new measure is the Content Development Scheme for Streaming Platforms, which will be conducted through a competition to recruit participating teams to develop mini-series for streaming platforms. We are excited to see Hong Kong's film industry and talent diversify into different platforms," she added. Before closing her remarks, Ms Tsang encouraged the audience to rediscover Hong Kong through the "Hello Hong Kong" Campaign.

     Prior to the screening, Lam joined the Executive Director of CAAM, Mr Stephen Gong, for a lively Q&A. She spoke on her experience in creating the film and was welcomed by a full house of film lovers and members from the Hong Kong community in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Ends/Tuesday, May 23, 2023
Issued at HKT 3:13

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