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| Glitzy expo spotlights Hong Kong's film capital role ( 01/04/2005 ) | |||||||||
The inaugural conference cum showbiz event was launched amidst much glamour and glitz with a gala evening attended by 1,000 film and entertainment industry leaders including past Cannes winners Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung and Hong Kong stars well known on the international circuit, Chow Yun Fatt and Jackie Chan. Mr Woo said Hong Kong is now at the centre of an entertainment market of 1.3 billion in the Chinese mainland and 300 million more in Northeast and Southeast Asia. "The city has exceptional reach into these markets especially with the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement with the mainland," added Mr Woo. Financial hub and China access Eight events previously scattered throughout the year have been brought under one umbrella to showcase Hong Kong's pivotal role in the Greater China film industry. One of the events, the TDC-organised Filmart, reported record visitor attendance of 2,832, up by 24 per cent, its highest in the exhibition's nine-year history. International buyers also rose by 46 per cent compared to last year. Two-thirds of the respondents at a survey conducted at Filmart agreed that Hong Kong is a major content production centre in Asia while half said the city was also a major content production centre for the mainland. Eighty-three Filmart exhibitors and 253 visitors were interviewed for the onsite survey. Filmmakers seeking finance, investors, producers and distributors can take part in the three-day Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum or HAF as it is better known. Organisers are playing up Hong Kong's reputation as an international financial centre and its access to the mainland market. "We want Hong Kong to be the place of convergence for directors, scriptwriters, banks, venture capitalists, producers and financers," said TDC director Raymond Yip. Producer and honourary adviser to HAF, Wouter Barendrecht, said Hong Kong is fast becoming an important ingredient as a growing number of co-productions are being set up in China, and more foreign productions shoot there. "More than anywhere in the region, Hong Kong has stars that mean something in Asia and around the world, most notably Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Michele Li" added Mr Barendrecht. Other events featured in the Entertainment Expo are the Hong Kong International Film Festival, Hong Kong Film Awards, the Hong Kong Digital Entertainment Excellence Awards, the Digital Entertainment Leadership Forum, the IFPI Hong Kong Top Sales Music Awards and Hong Kong Independent Film & Short Video Awards. Related links | |||||||||
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