Cover Jun Li was named Best Director at the Golden Horse 2025 (Photo: courtesy of Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Executive Committee)
Jun Li was named Best Director at the Golden Horse 2025 (Photo: courtesy of Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Executive Committee)
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Hong Kong filmmaker Jun Li defies convention with ‘Queerpanorama’, an audacious, award-winning exploration of queer identity, intimacy and openness that redefines LGBTQ+ cinema in Asia
Investors advised Hong Kong director Jun Li to play it safe, but there’s little that could be called cautious about his latest work, Queerpanorama (2025). Sexually explicit, rated Category III and centred on a gay man’s open relationships, it has emerged as one of the boldest LGBTQ+ films produced in Hong Kong. Li’s instinct proved right: in late November, he won Best Director at the prestigious Golden Horse Awards held in the Taiwan region’s capital, Taipei.
Inspired by his own relationship with his partner from New York during the pandemic, Li, who identifies as gay, says he wanted to capture the realities of an open relationship. “We had one rule. Whenever we met someone new separately, we had to tell this person that we had a boyfriend,” he says. “Hook-up culture isn’t new and is common among people of our generation. It may not be for everyone, but many of us have experienced this.”
Above Jun Li received the Best Director award from Taiwanese auteur Ang Lee at the Golden Horse 2025 (Photo: courtesy of Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Executive Committee)
Jun Li received the Best Director award from Taiwanese auteur Ang Lee at the Golden Horse 2025 (Photo: courtesy of Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Executive Committee)
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While open relationships may be familiar in real life, they remain uncommon on screen in Hong Kong—one may even say the subject is still somewhat taboo. The market for the BL (“boys’ love”) genre is smaller here than in places such as Thailand, Japan and South Korea. Although the city has produced notable gay films, including Wong Kar-wai’s Happy Together (1997), Amphetamine (2010) and Suk Suk (2019), these are often defined as independent or arthouse works appealing to niche audiences.
“Some local filmmakers have tried to tell gay stories before, but the results may not have matched their hopes,” says Li. “Investors advised me to take a safer path by presenting something more widely acceptable. With gay films, people often expect tragedy. I have nothing against that, but mine is different.”
Li’s film tells the story of a young, unnamed gay man who adopts the identities of his sexual partners after each encounter. Framed as an “erotic travelogue”, the black-and-white drama delves into identity, intimacy, loneliness and urban isolation in modern Hong Kong.
Above A film still from ‘Queerpanorama’ by Jun Li (Photo: courtesy of Jun Li)
A film still from ‘Queerpanorama’ by Jun Li (Photo: courtesy of Jun Li)
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Although the framework was drawn from Li’s own life, authenticity was key. He asked each of his supporting actors—many of whom are gay—if they would be willing to play versions of themselves. “Half of them were camera-shy, but the other half embraced it,” he recalls, noting that only the lead actor, Jayden Cheung, is straight. “He even has a girlfriend,” Li says with a laugh. “But I was impressed by his versatility, and I wanted someone early in their career so the audience wouldn’t be distracted by stardom or an imbalance with the supporting cast.”
Premiering in September at the Hong Kong Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, Queerpanorama drew attention for its sexual candour and bold portrayal of queer identity. When asked how he found the courage for such an unflinching vision, the 33-year-old director replies with measured calm: “I didn’t think too much about it. I simply believe it’s a director’s role to tell a story in the way that feels truest to him.”
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Above A film still from ‘Queerpanorama’ by Jun Li (Photo: courtesy of Jun Li)
A film still from ‘Queerpanorama’ by Jun Li (Photo: courtesy of Jun Li)
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Since beginning his film career in 2008, Li has gravitated toward social issues, whether exploring transgender identity in Tracey (2018) or spotlighting homelessness in Drifting (2022). His films have garnered praise for their nuanced sensitivity and bravery in addressing difficult subjects. Li attributes these traits to his background in journalism at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Gender Studies at Cambridge, where he developed a sharp eye for untold stories. Coupled with an early passion for theatre and cinema, directing seemed almost inevitable.
After Queerpanorama, Li plans a short break and has yet to map out his next project. But one thing is certain: he intends to stay in filmmaking. “I wouldn’t call it my calling or mission to make socially conscious films,” he says. “I’d simply say I want to tell stories I believe in.”
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Zabrina is the Senior Editor, Arts and Culture of Tatler Hong Kong. She specialises in performing arts, visual art and film. Her wanderlust was first fuelled by the Mighty Rovers Antarctica Expedition 2010. Over the years, she has interviewed A-list artists and filmmakers, including Oscar winners Chlóe Zhao and Tim Yip, Golden Horse winner Sylvia Chang, In the Mood for Love cinematographer Christopher Doyle, Pachinko author Min Jin Lee, and Coachella’s first Chinese solo singer Jackson Wang. She won gold at the WAN-IFRA Asian Media Awards for her 2021 feature on the waves of hate crimes targeting Asian Americans.
