Leaders in Hong Kong film are stepping up to save the industry from the devastation from the coronavirus pandemic
Local film production and investment have taken quite the hit this past year with cinemas closing for six weeks from March to mid-May, and box offices plunging by more than 70% in the first half of 2020.
It has been announced that renowned filmmakers Wong Kar-Wai, Peter Chan Ho-sun and Derek Yee have pledged to donate USD$33.5 million to Hong Kong’s new Directors’ Succession Scheme. A government-funded initiative that is looking to boost the Hong Kong film industry after the coronavirus damage.
Alongside the Hong Kong Film Development Fund, directors will pair up with one to two promising filmmakers in the city to create films using the USD$1.2 million budget. The three directors will also be joined by famed local filmmakers Gordan Chan, Mabel Cheung and Alex Law with the goal of creating between 10-12 films in total.
An additional USD$1.05 million has also been allocated to a scriptwriting incubation program which is expected to generate at least 40 original screenplays.
Due to the coronavirus, Wong Kar-Wai has also been forced to suspend production on his latest film Blossoms – a sequel to his classic In the Mood for Love, which was slated to be released in late 2021.
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