Letters | Row over Hong Kong school documentary offers a teachable moment
- Readers discuss what those behind a documentary on students of a prestigious school could have done differently, and express appreciation for the film
The dispute serves as a compelling reminder that the director and filmed subjects of a documentary are co-constructors of knowledge – a relationship of mutual respect and cooperation. Any attempt at uncovering and representing the real must not be oblivious to the fact that it has the power to influence it.
Director Mabel Cheung Yuen-ting’s ambitions for the project seemed to have derailed her from that relationship. But her documentary is very real, so the harm has been done.
Sometimes, there can be no inoffensive way to search for the truth. A director might have to push boundaries, but crossing them is another story. The documentary could reach a wider audience if shown in public, but something should have been done to address the distress of the woman who did not want it to be shown, for example by removing sensitive segments from the film or making other editorial compromises.
Equally problematic is the lack of clear consensus on the nature of the documentary when the initial agreement was signed years ago. How clear was it that the film could go public? How much power did the participants have to negotiate during the process?
The decade-long production seems to have commenced without these questions being answered. It depended on the “consent” obtained from the girls’ parents when the students themselves were too young to understand the consequences.