Cannes honours Asian film talent (hktdc.com)


	TDC Executive Director Fred Lam (second from right) in Cannes with My Blueberry Nights stars Jude Law and Norah Jones and director Wong Kar Wai

	Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai met the press outside the Hong Kong pavilion

	Hong Kong actress Maggie Cheung was on the judging panel at Cannes this year

It opened with the screening of Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai's My Blueberry Nights and ended with awards to Korean actress Jeon Do-yeon and Japanese director Naomi Kawase.

The 60th Festival de Cannes was steeped in Asian influence, highlighting the recent consolidation of the region's film industry as one of the world's major players. And a Hong Kong flavour was there all the way.

Wong - long a Cannes darling thanks to his best director award for 1997's Happy Together - was given the honour of opening the festival with his first English-language feature starring Jude Law and singer-turned-actress Norah Jones. It was the first time in the festival's rich history that a Chinese film-maker had been afforded such an honour.

A member of the Cannes jury the year before, Wong said that he had deliberately set out to have his film open the festival's 2007 edition. "[I thought] it would be good to come back with an opening film because most of the time my films came at the last minute," he said at the opening night press conference, in reference to his reputation for getting his previous films ready at the last possible minute.

In the spotlight

There was no chance of that this time around and the spotlight's focus stayed on Asia from opening night on. Joining Wong on the famed red carpet was his some-time collaborator - and fellow Cannes award winner - Hong Kong movie star Maggie Cheung Man-yuk.

Cheung - who won the best actress award for her role in 2004's Clean - was a member of the nine-person jury that in the end handed over the best actress award to South Korea's Jeon for her role in Secret Sunshine and the prestigious Grand Prix award to Kawase for her film The Mourning Forest.

Elsewhere, a selection of Asia's most glamorous stars lit up the red carpet and they included Gong Li, Shu Qi and actor Chen Chang. Outside of the main competition, Hong Kong's Johnnie To Kei-fung joined co-directors Tsui Hark and Ringo Lam Ling-tung to present their three-part production, aptly named Triangle.

There were also five Chinese speaking directors featured in the festival's inaugural Chacun Son Cinema (To Each His Own Cinema) - a collection of 33 three minute films made by past Cannes award winners.

Wong, Taiwan's Hou Hsiao-hsien, Malaysia's Taiwan-based Tsai Ming-liang and Chinese mainland directors Chen Kaige and Zhang Yimou all had works featured - again highlighting just how important Asian cinema has become at the world's most prestigious film festival.

Held in esteem

Speaking at Cannes' opening night reception, Fred Lam, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) said it was an honour for a Hong Kong film-maker to be asked to launch the festival - and that the decision was a reflection on the high standing the local industry has.

"It shows that Hong Kong films are highly regarded in Europe," said Mr Lam. "HKTDC is dedicated to supporting the Hong Kong film industry through our organisation of the annual Hong Kong Film and TV Market (FILMART). We also support outreach programmes in major film markets around the world, and provide tailor-made business matching services, helping Hong Kong film companies find the right partners for film financing, production and distribution."

To that end HKTDC again organised the Hong Kong Pavilion at Cannes, giving local film companies a venue to meet international film industry heads and discuss film financing, production and promotion.

Building on FILMART

Fourteen Hong Kong companies were represented at Cannes this year - and business was brisk, continuing on from March's highly successful Hong Kong FILMART, which attracted 453 exhibitors and 4,094 buyers, a jump of 11.3 per cent and 18.9 per cent respectively over 2006.

One visitor to the pavilion in Cannes was Mr Henry Tang, Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region who lent his support to the local film industry, saying he believed the city should become the most important film hub in Asia - one that is, internationally, on a par with Hollywood and the Cannes festival itself.

Mr Tang spearheaded the most high-profile Hong Kong delegation yet to head to Cannes - he was joined by Mr Lam and Jack So Chak-kwong, chairman of the new Film Development Council - and he met with festival director Gilles Jacob, who expressed his wish to forge stronger ties between the city and the festival.

Mr Tang left Cannes buoyed by meetings with film industry representatives from South Korea, Australia, Italy and the United States - meetings he said pointed to a positive future for film in Hong Kong.