The 33^rd Hong Kong International Film Festival pays tribute to the 25^th Anniversary of Film Workshop
The 3^rd Asian Film Awards bestows outstanding contribution to Asian Cinema Award

[February 25, 2009] The 33rd Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF) today unveiled the first special sidebar programme of this year’s festival: “A Tribute to Romantic Visions: 25th Anniversary of Film Workshop”

The feature will include a special screening of 12 films (for a detailed list, please see Table 1) and a large-scale exhibition of Film Workshop’s history and memorabilia, as well as a special edition catalogue.

The 3rd Asian Film Awards is also proud to present the Outstanding Achievement to Asian Cinema Award to the Film Workshop. It will be presented by the special guest and frequent collaborator, Taiwanese superstar Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia, at the ceremony.

The 3rd Asian Film Awards presentation ceremony will be held on March 23, 2009 at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre.

Founded by world-renowned director Tsui Hark, and veteran Hong Kong producer Nansun Shi, the production company Film Workshop has been at the forefront of Asian cinema for the past 25 years. With a completed film library of some 50 films, including Peking Opera Blues, Black Mask and the Once Upon a Time in China series, Film Workshop has long been a by-word for quality and box office success, from its inception through to Hong Kong cinema’s mid-90s boom and on to the present day.

In addition to producing hit movies, Film Workshop was also responsible for launching the careers of some of the most talented directors. A Better Tomorrow, the seminal 1986 action crime drama produced by Tsui Hark, introduced to the international audience the dynamic vision of acclaimed director John Woo (Mission Impossible 2, Red Cliff).

Woo recalls, “Tsui Hark was a very close collaborator and gave me a lot of ideas while we were writing the script to “Tomorrow.” At the lowest point of my career, he encouraged me to pour my anger and frustrations into the screenplay, and we ended up with an exciting new take on brotherhood between cops and gangsters.”

Since its inception, the mission of Film Workshop has been to bridge the gulf between art house and commercial cinema. According to Tsui Hark, “Our aim in establishing Film Workshop was to create a space where filmmakers could be free to make films. I have always felt that every filmmaker must have an international outlook, so that whatever the film’s budget, it can be appreciated globally.”

Indeed, Tsui Hark has taken this message to heart. Often called the “Spielberg” of Asian Cinema, Tsui has created many of Chinese cinema’s modern classics. From the swashbuckling revisionist drama Swordsman, to the achingly sentimental A Chinese Ghost Story and the visual spectacle of Zu: Warriors from the Magic Mountain, Tsui Hark and Film Workshop have shattered the boundaries of Asian cinema with an immersive blend of classic storytelling and cutting edge imagery.

[A TRIBUTE TO ROMANTIC VISIONS: 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF FILM WORKSHOP]

List of screenings:

1984   Shanghai Nights – The first production from Film Workshop
1986   A Better Tomorrow
1986   Peking Opera Blues
1987   A Chinese Ghost Story
1990   Swordsman
1991   Once Upon a Time in China 
1992   Swordsman II
1993   Green Snake
1997   A Chinese Ghost Story: The Tsui Hark Animation
1999   Time and Tide
2001   The Legend of Zu
2004   Seven Swords

[A TRIBUTE TO ROMANTIC VISIONS: 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF FILM WORKSHOP]
Special edition catalogue:

An exhaustive index of Film Workshop’s productions over the past 25 years, including commentary from the people behind the scenes, as well as interviews with John Woo, Brigitte Lin, William Chang, etc. On sale during the festival period at all screening venues and the HKIFF online store (www.hkiff.org.hk). Limited editions.

[A TRIBUTE TO ROMANTIC VISIONS: 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF FILM WORKSHOP]
Exhibition details

A special exhibition of original movie scripts, props, classic stills and, for the first time ever, displays of the original manuscript from Tsui Hark’s personal collection.