John Leung

It was raining non-stop when Hong Kong was rocked by the tumultuous events of October 2014 (the "umbrella movement"). In a fixed sequence shot, the film captured students meeting each other in the hall, in the rooms, discussing, arguing about or remaining indifferent to the event, while it continued to rain outside.

Gun is a loan shark. Having worked hard for years, i.e. intimidating and threatening his debtors, he musters just enough money to purchase a house for the family. The plan is at risk, however, when one of his debtors dies and Gun discovers that he is not the only creditor. Out of desperation, he asks for his daughter’s help, who is unwilling to be involved in her father’s shady business. The simmering tension causes a rift in the family.

Ting enjoys the limelight, thrives on the attention and rises to the occasion each time she struts her stuff on the Cantonese opera stage, an amateur passion she pursues with the austere self-discipline and competitiveness of a professional. Her best friend, Yuk, is her polar opposite, a companion who feels more comfortable on the sidelines in a supporting role. When the threat of losing the lead role to Yuk, complicated by an injury, creates a rift between the two friends and sours her relationships with her opera mentor and family, Ting learns to confront her inner demons and swallow her ego to mend broken ties.

Mommies tells an emotionally compelling and complex story of two interwoven mother-and-son relationships. Sally works as a hostess, a kind of life her unruly son Keith loathes and from which he seeks refuge through self-harm. Keith looks with longing for the seemingly happy and loving relationship between mentally-ill Mandy and her son Luke. Yearning to become part of the other family, Keith wishes Mandy were his mother instead. But will that ever be possible? The sympathetic Mandy and Luke try to help Keith, and when they think things are looking better... Subtly told, Mommies captures the human condition of Hong Kong people’s lives seldom seen.

The title is an allusion to the Chinese gambling game but the story is a treacherous journey with high stakes and a handsome reward. Three friends brave rugged terrain to escape hardship and persecution, surviving on foraged food and their meagre possessions – a pack of ciggies, the Little Red Book of Chairman Mao and three dices – all the while hounded by Red Guards on patrol. Loyalty, friendship and life are bet against a new beginning in the city where the streets are allegedly paved with gold. The odds are against them and the chance of survival is a row of the dice.

In a traditional fishing village where most youngsters have left to work in the city, the older generations are left behind. Ren, a widow who lives in the village helps her neighbour, Mrs Wah, to deliver a gift to her son, Chung in the city. Ren finds out that Chung is leading a harsh life. Back in the village, there is no one with whom she can share this secret. The only refuge from the sleepless night is her deceased husband. A Thousand Sails is a short tale about the poignant separation between city and village, mother and son, life and death. With long shots and sophisticated art direction, Eric Tsang Hing-weng compellingly captures the actors’ performances, especially that of Professor Chow Po-chung’s surprising debut.

Bible of Kong Girls takes a look at three women exploring their lives and dilemmas within the space of a year. Splitting the film segments into the four seasons of the year, we follow Asther, Sai B and C-fu. The three modern, spirited and quirky women are introduced to an article, ‘The 37 Self-help Guidelines from Lee Ka-shing’s Private Secretary’ that serves as a sort of bible for the woman of today. With each passing season the women encounter another challenge life throws at them whilst following the rules of the article, but are these guidelines tearing the friends apart instead of helping them?

Fei roams the city at night, attempting to capture it with her camera. One night she meets a mysterious cow in the busy city and photographs it. Soon she meets Ming, who is trying to record the cow's noise. Together they attempt to find the elusive cow.