Directing
Ashes are all that remain when someone dies, as the rest of us carry on with the remembrance of the past, in the form of things that continue to burden us. Granny Di makes a meagre living out of recycling cardboard and found objects on the street, carrying the ashes of her late husband wherever she goes. As the going gets tough, she is reduced to stealing and selling sacrificial offerings from the funeral home. Ellen Liu plays the desolate and desperate Granny Di, rendering a lively and moving performance with a human touch. The short brings us through the nooks and crannies of Hung Hom district, chronicling a sorrowful tale about forsaken old age.
After death, before reincarnation, the souls of the deceased transit through a fantastical realm known as, Another World. Gudo is a spirit that helps to guide these transient souls to their reincarnation. While guiding a young girl named Yuri, he learns that humans have emotions that he does not understand. Tasked by Goddess Mira to help Yuri control her rage and prevent her transformation into a monster, Gudo embarks on a perilous mission.
Inspired by the poem A Snail in a Phone Box (2006) by Dr Eric Lui. The work synthesises new insights into visuals and poetry. What begins as a promise evolves into an exploration of the emotional links between poetry and the art of loving, eventually transforming into a hegemony of power. To recreate this message, director and animator Step C. developed a new surreal style that combines live action with animation, building a realm that blurs the boundaries between reality and dreams.
Poetry on Film is a moving image commissioning project for young and emerging Hong Kong filmmakers, motivated by the belief that poetry possesses an inherent cinematic quality. Its rhythmic cadence, vivid imagery, and emotional depth offer a rich tapestry for filmmakers to weave their visual narratives. Animator STEP C., narrative filmmaker Chu Hoi Ying, analogue film artist Jolene Mok, and documentarian Lee Wai Shing were asked to choose a contemporary Chinese-language poem written by a local writer, then visualise it using their personal cinematic language. The resulting shorts showcase the diversity of Hong Kong moving image practice, with unique approaches to medium, storytelling, cinematography, and sound.
We can see things differently when we see things from different angles.
“Human race will just surrender to fear by betraying our true feeling.” – Taizo Kato. The value and happiness of people should not be built on others. If you try to find someone to complete your life, your self-value will become dependent on others and will feel incomplete when you lose this person.
The film portrays the author's fear of how Hong Kong has changed and how she faces her emotions. It feels like the soul is broken into many pieces, but if we survive, depths of night will eventually pass.
