22
FAHTHAI
STOPOVER
film
HONG KONG ARTS
FESTIVAL
Until 22 March
Now in its 42nd edition,
the HKAF hosts the best
theatre, opera, dance
and music productions
from across the globe.
Highlights include a
staging of Pina Bausch’s
Iphigenia in Tauris
and
the London Symphony
Orchestra playing Mahler’s
“Symphony No 1”.
hk.artsfestival.org
AFFORDABLE ART FAIR
21–23 March
The fair is back, with over
100 galleries taking part,
to present thousands of
budget-friendly original
artworks priced from
HK$1,000-$100,000.
affordableartfair.com/
hongkong
INTERNATIONAL BLACK
BOX FESTIVAL
Until 30 March
Organised by the Hong
Kong Repertory Theatre,
the inaugural IBBF is set
to stage five very different
plays by theatre groups
and individual artists from
Hong Kong, Singapore,
Taiwan, the United
Kingdom and Japan.
hkrep.com
Hong Kong
happenings
Bangkok Airways
offers twice-daily
flights to Hong
Kong via Koh
Samui
B I G G E R P I C T U R E
society, touching on everything from urban life and
gender and class issues, to religion and the legal
system. The festival will screen the director’s entire
oeuvre – consisting of
Dancing in the Dust
(2003),
Beautiful City
(2004),
Fireworks Wednesday
(2006),
About Elly
(2009),
A Separation
and his
latest outing,
The Past
(2013) – which makes
this the ideal opportunity to get to know Asghar
Farhadi and his Iran.
Born in China’s Hebei Province in 1963,
Jiang Wen was an established actor before
reinventing himself as a director in the 1990s.
His films are bold, satirical and contain naughty
political innuendo, a rarity in Chinese cinema.
He first ventured behind the camera with the
1994 Cultural Revolution-themed
In the Heat of
the Sun
, which was screened at the Venice Film
Festival. His second feature, the Palme d’Or-
nominated World War II comedy
Devils on the
Doorstep
(2000), was banned domestically for
its harsh depiction of the nature of the Chinese
people, while Jiang himself was banned from
filmmaking for six years. After his critically
acclaimed comeback, the magical-realist
The Sun
Also Rises
(2007), failed at the box office, Jiang
achieved commercial success with mainstream
blockbuster
Let the Bullets Fly
(2010), a sharp
and hilarious Western-style fable set in 1920s
China. All four of Jiang’s directorial efforts will be
shown at this year’s festival.
Running from 24 March–7 April, the festival
is set to spotlight a range of Asian films, from far-
flung locales ranging from Thailand, Hong Kong,
Taiwan, Korea, the Philippines, India and Nepal
to Israel, Palestine, Qatar and Kazakhstan. In spite
of fierce competition from other international film
festivals, HKIFF executive director Roger Garcia
believes the festival stands apart, thanks largely
to its special retrospectives and tributes, and its
focus on Asian films. Two other major events —
the star-studded Asian Film Awards (AFA) and
Hong Kong-Asia Film Finance Forum (HAF) —
are held in parallel with the HKIFF to celebrate
excellence in Asian cinema, and help connect
Asian filmmakers with financiers.
hkiff.org
HKIFF’s
executive
director believes
the festival stands
apart, thanks
largely to its
retrospectives
and tributes
SCREEN DREAMS
Vivian Ho's event
artwork, "Popcorn
Mountain"; (below)
guests raise a glass
at opening night
