- William Kwok had urged peers ‘not to be scared, film it first, edit it first and screen it first’ despite documentary interviewee saying she never consented to public screening
- Principal of Ying Wa Girls’ School reveals Kwok’s written apology to school
Co-director William Kwok poses with his trophy at the 41st Hong Kong Film Awards in Hong Kong. Photo: Reuters The co-director of controversial Hong Kong documentary To my Nineteen-Year-Old Self has “deeply apologised” to Ying Wa Girls’ School for his acceptance speech at a top awards ceremony, admitting he was insensitive and had caused misunderstanding.
The coming-of-age documentary, directed by Mabel Cheung Yuen-ting and William Kwok Wai-lun, won best picture at the 41st Hong Kong Film Awards last month, despite being embroiled in controversy after one student interviewee said she had not consented to any public screenings.
Co-director Kwok had used his acceptance speech to urge fellow documentarians “not to be scared, film it first, edit it first and screen it first”.
Kwok’s written apology later to the school was only made public by principal Francis Kwan Hon-cheung on Sunday night, where he admitted making “inappropriate remarks” when accepting the best picture award.
“I … admit that my remarks that night did not fully consider the sensitive background of the incident, and the content of my speech caused public misunderstanding, I am deeply saddened by this,” Kwok wrote on April 18, two days after the awards. “I would like to extend my deepest apologies to the Hong Kong Film Awards, the school and the production team.”
Some internet users accused him of being “tone-deaf” and disrespectful towards the interviewees’ feelings.
Kwok said his “lack of consideration” during his speech that night caused misunderstandings with many people. “The original intention of my speech is by no means referring to the use of unscrupulous means to film work and not to abide by the law,” he added.
“Instead, I hope filmmakers have the courage and perseverance to participate in production actively.”
He also said he “firmly believed” documentary filmmakers must be fair to those being filmed, and provide necessary protection for underaged participants in the process.
The film in question traces the lives of six students at the elite Ying Wa Girls’ School over a decade, focusing on their personal, family and school lives. But two days after its premiere in February, one of the girls revealed she never agreed to any public showing. Another girl later said she was misled when she signed a release form.
Your Voice: Dissecting the controversy behind To My Nineteen-Year-Old Self
Director Cheung, who said the row was likely to have been sparked by “communication errors” between the students and the production crew, eventually apologised over the scandal and pulled the film from cinemas.
Meanwhile, principal Kwan said the school board had decided to remove a portion in the film featuring an alumnus upon her request.
“After discussion, the school board has decided to respect and accept her request. I also apologised to her in person for the school’s poor handling of the screening. The school is now proposing a settlement in the hope of resolving the matter,” Kwan wrote in a statement on Sunday.
He added the school had responded to the privacy commissioner’s inquiry and had completed the first draft of its report to the Education Bureau.
“We expect to complete a number of thematic reviews in one to two months, and will report the results when the time comes,” he added.