Opinion | Celebrate the mutual understanding and shared values that the film industry brings us
- Links between Hong Kong, Taiwan and mainland filmmakers are vital to building mutual trust and relationships
The controversy created during the Golden Horse awards ceremony continues to send ripples across the Chinese film world. There is no doubt that the damage caused by a speech by Taiwanese documentary maker Fu Yue on the island’s political status was real – it led to the live broadcast being interrupted across mainland China, while jury chair Gong Li refused to present the award for best feature film. The incident could have serious repercussions: mainland films may not appear in the awards, dubbed the “Chinese Oscars”, and cross-strait film production could stop altogether.
This would be truly regrettable given the harmony and integration that exist in today’s cross-strait film industry, and would be a saddening moment for filmmakers and for the audience at large.
There exist many differences in ideology, values and cultural concepts across the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan, but films make for a common platform to bridge these gaps and promote exchanges.
There are now numerous famous filmmakers that hail from both sides of the straits, after more than 30 years of exchanges and cooperation in investment, technology, talent and experience. This has resulted in blockbusters such as The Founding of an Army, Ip Man, Bodyguards and Assassins and Operation Red Sea, which blend unique shooting techniques and concepts from all three cities, and are massive box office successes. Awards such as the Golden Rooster Awards, Hong Kong Film Awards and Golden Horse Awards are therefore not only a platform for promoting Chinese-language films to the world, but also an excellent link for cultural exchanges between the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
The integration between Hong Kong and the mainland in film and television has existed for the longest time. Hong Kong films, songs, literary works and celebrities are to a large extent ambassadors for the city. Jackie Chan, Chow Yun-fat, Stephen Chow, Leslie Cheung and the “Four Heavenly Kings” – Jacky Cheung, Andy Lau, Aaron Kwok and Leon Lai – are well-known across the mainland. Compatriots there got to understand Hong Kong through these cultural icons, reducing the psychological distance between the two locations. The recent passing of wuxia novelist and essayist Jin Yong is another example, triggering collective mourning across the Chinese world.
