Interview: Wilfred Wong

HongKongTatler.com: How long have you been involved with the HKIFF?
Wilfred Wong: I was appointed chairman in 2004 and since then have founded the Asian Film Awards. Surprisingly, I don’t come from a film background. My day job is running a property construction company. I am a terrific film buff, however.

HKT.com: What are the people you work with like?
WW: Our previous and present vice-chairmen include film veterans Ann Hui and Sylvia Chang, who are really committed to promoting movies as an art. The film industry may seem all glamour, and it’s true that film people have egos – you can’t be a great director if you don’t believe in what you do – but they’re also very creative people. We want people to see Hong Kong as a film hub and I believe that the growth area in movies is right here in Asia.

HKT.com: What’s your best memory from your time at the HKIFF?
WW: Hearing that our own micro-film series, Beautiful 2012, was screened at more than 20 film festivals around the world, including Cannes and Sundance. Ann Hui’s segment alone was viewed 50 million times on Youku.

HKT.com: Are your days full of meetings with film stars and directors?
WW: Hardly! I just oversee everything. But I love hearing tatler_stories from various members of our staff. I’ll never forget the story of Iranian actress Leila Hatami, who flew to Hong Kong last year to pick up the award for A Separation. None of the others [involved in the film] could come because of visa and immigration issues. She was battling a high fever and she had to bring along her children, but she made it to the ceremony just hours before it started. We gave her a standing ovation.

HKT.com: What can we expect from this year’s HKIFF?
WW: We’ll be premiering a lot of Chinese films, from Taiwan and Mainland China, as well as showing digitally restored classics like Heaven’s Gate and Shoah. We want to enhance people’s knowledge and appreciation of cinema, not just its present but its past as well.

HKT.com: What are you personally looking forward to this year?
WW: The release of Beautiful 2013, of course. And, as a young boy, I remember watching Lawrence of Arabia and being absolutely dazzled by the desert scenes. I can’t wait to watch the digitally remastered version at the HKIFF.

The 37th Hong Kong International Film Festival runs from March 17 to April 2 and will screen more than 250 movies from around the e world, including a digitally remastered version of Lawrence of Arabia and a new documentary about Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece The Shining. The 11th Asia Film Financing Forum will be held alongside it from March 18 to March 20, and the 7th Asian Film Awards will be hosted by jury president Andy Lau on March 18.