Why did Hong Kong’s Ray Yeung direct the new LGBT movie, Suk Suk?
Despite its small size, the Hong Kong movie industry has a lot to be proud of. It has produced global icons such as Bruce Lee, acclaimed actors such as Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Maggie Cheung (who have won awards around the world), and trendsetting directors such as Wong Kar-wai and John Woo. At its peak Hong Kong produced more films than the likes of France, Japan and the UK, and was the largest exporter of films in Asia – bigger even than India’s Bollywood.
STYLE LGBTQ+ Series: Queer voices
These aspects make Hong Kong’s lack of LGBT-focused movies all the more disappointing. Certainly, there were exceptions – most notably Wong Kar-wai’s gay drama, Happy Together – but generally, few films, despite the abundance produced here, have provided a glimpse into Hong Kong’s LGBTQ+ community.
Potentially heralding a welcome change in attitude is Ray Yeung’s new film, Suk Suk. The director’s latest work examines the lives of two elderly gay men in Hong Kong – the “gay and grey” demographic – and has been earning plaudits both here, where it won the Hong Kong Film Critics Society award for Best Film, and globally on the film festival circuit.
Ahead of the film’s general release in Hong Kong on May 28, we spoke to Yeung at Soho House to learn what inspired Suk Suk, and to hear his thoughts on the difficulty of finding local actors willing to take on a gay role, and the continuing difficulty in finding finance for similar films in Hong Kong.
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Few of the many films produced in Hong Kong have provided a glimpse into Hong Kong’s LGBTQ+ community, so what inspired Ray Yeung to direct Suk Suk?