ORGANISERS OF the Hong Kong International Film Festival have scored some firsts for this year's event. There's the inaugural Asian Film Awards, which will open the 23-day festival on March 20, and the subsequent star-studded gala screenings at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Then there's the introduction of the Dear Earth section, dedicated to films with environmental focus and spearheaded by Davis Guggenheim's Oscar-winning An Inconvenient Truth, starring Al Gore.
This year, organisers are highlighting the number of premieres: there will be 16 world premieres, nine international premieres and 22 Asian premieres.
It's the first time the festival has been so explicit about it, says artistic director Li Cheuk-to - and it's not something he's excited about. 'What's the point of an Asian premiere anyway?'
'We've been subtle about this in the past, but it has worked against us. Friends suggested we play up our share of premieres,' says Li.
'Festivals around the world are scrambling for premieres,' says executive director Peter Tsi Ka-kei. 'And, sadly, this is how people judge the calibre of a festival - by how many there are. When I negotiate with filmmakers about getting their film screened here as a premiere they ask what they're going to get from it. They want a premiere that will generate a lot of noise. If we want to get the directors and cast here they have difficulties catering for their entourage, which festivals in South Korea, Japan and even Shanghai can afford, but we can't.'
The one edge that Tsi and his colleagues can claim is the range of mainland films on show. It might have lost out to regional competitors during the past few years in terms of premieres of foreign movies, but the Hong Kong International Film Festival - with its long-running Chinese Renaissance section - has acted as a springboard for many Chinese directors. This year, it's showcasing Lu Yue's The Obscure, Yin Lichuan's The Case and Zhao Ye's Ma Wu Jia - each remarkable in its approach to storytelling.
But even that's under threat. Pusan International Film Festival, for example, has been seen increasingly as the showcase for mainland auteurs - it's regarded as the springboard for Jia Zhangke and his fellow so-called sixth generation filmmakers. A growing number of events in Shanghai are also giving Tsi's festival a run for its money.