Documentary director Matthew Torne says Hong Kong is 'still a colony'

The director of a fly-on-the-wall documentary film that follows a year of protest by two young Hong Kong activists said last night that the city it depicted was as much a colony today as it was under British rule.

British filmmaker Matthew Torne's Lessons in Dissent charts a tumultuous year of protest by Joshua Wong Chi-fung and Ma Jai two student activists who rose to prominence in 2012.

Speaking after a screening at Metroplex Cinema in Kowloon Bay, Torne offered some insight into his motivation for making the HK$3 million film, which casts its two main subjects in a positive light: "I'd argue that Hong Kong is still now a colony. Sovereign rule has simply moved from London to Beijing.

"It's as if Hong Kong people are children that need to be looked after and can't make decisions themselves. That's what colonialism does,'' Torne said at a post-screening question-and-answer session.

Wong, the outspoken leader of the Scholarism movement against national education, and Ma, a more understated social activist, were both 15 when the film was made. They are former classmates from Ap Lei Chau. Their contrasting styles drive the film's narrative.

The film features original footage Torne and his team filmed of Wong and Ma during key demonstrations and events in 2012. They include the June 4 candlelight vigil, the July 1 pro-democracy march, and major protests against the introduction of national education such as the nine-day occupation of the government headquarters .

"The response has been overwhelmingly positive," Torne said outside the cinema last night.