A Special Program Looking into the Past and Present of Hong Kong Queer Cinema

In collaboration with the Seoul LGBT Archive, the SIPFF presents a special program titled “A Fresh Wave in Hong Kong Queer Cinema.” The year 2024 marks the 10th anniversary of the Hong Kong Umbrella Movement—a milestone that has been largely overlooked by the Korean media and nearly forgotten globally amidst the Israeli-Palestinian and Russia-Ukraine conflicts. During the Umbrella Movement in late 2014, Hong Kong citizens demanding full direct elections for their Chief Executive staged peaceful protests for about 79 days, forming human chains and carrying yellow umbrellas as symbols of resistance from late September to December 15. Following the Chinese government’s harsh suppression of the protests, the National People’s Congress passed the Hong Kong National Security Law, which came into effect on March 23 of this year, the movement’s 10th anniversary, effectively dismantling Hong Kong freedom.

Once a powerhouse in Asian cinema, Hong Kong’s film industry began to decline after the 1997 handover to China. Yet, the influence it held over the Asian film industry before that time still evokes strong nostalgia and leaves an indelible impact. Within this legacy, Hong Kong queer cinema holds a special place, profoundly shaping both Asian queer cinema and LGBTQ+ communities across the region. Renowned directors of the 1990s like Stanley KWAN Lan Yu, WONG Kar-wai Happy Together, and CHEN Kaige Farewell My Concubine created works that continue to resonate with audiences. For many LGBTQ+ youth in Asia, these films became part of their formative years, offering mirrors of self-discovery in sexual orientation and gender identity. Some of these viewers even went on to become emerging filmmakers, inspired to tell queer stories of their own.

Following the handover, as mainland China began to invest heavily and exert greater market influence, the distinct character of Hong Kong cinema started to fade. Ironically, however, queer films—focusing on LGBTQ+ lives and love—remained largely untouched by mainland funding, allowing Hong Kong queer cinema to persist as independent art films. Recent examples include The First Girl I Loved(2022) and Green Night (2023). Even today, queer films are prohibited from both production and public screening in mainland China.

Asia’s first LGBTQ+ film festival, the Hong Kong Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, has sustained its legacy over the years, standing as a vital cultural institution. Gary MAK, who has worked as a programmer for the festival for more than a decade, now serves as Executive Director of the Hong Kong Film Development Council, where he continues to support the festival and the wider LGBTQ+ community in numerous ways.

This special program aims to honor Hong Kong’s resilient spirit of freedom and to reignite public awareness around the lives and rights of LGBTQ+ individuals in Hong Kong.