[2024.03.07] WU KANG-JEN WANTS TO MAKE HONG KONG FILMS AND IS LOOKING FOR A HOME

Jennifer Yu and Wu Kang-Jen
courtesy of on.cc

courtesy of singtao.com

Wai Ka Fai presents the Best Director Award to Jonathan Li

courtesy of mingpao.com

The 30th Hong Kong Film Critic Society Awards took place yesterday at the Hong Kong Film Archive. Taiwan artist Wu Kang-Jen and Jennifer Yu Heung Ying won Best Actor and Best Actress respectively. Guest presenter and director Wai Ka Fai encouraged new filmmakers to widen their vision.

Yesterday the event presented the 8 recommended films, including DUST TO DUST (DAI BAK GOR YIM YI YUN), TIME STILL TURNS THE PAGES (NIN SIU YUT GEI), TO BE CONTINUED (SEUNG MEI YUEN CHEUNG), FLY ME TO THE MOON (DAN YUEN YUN CHEUNG GAU), IN BROAD DAYLIGHT (BAK YUN JI HA), ELEGY (SZE), THE GOLDFINGER (GUM SAU JI) and A LYRICIST WANNABE (TIN CHI L). Society president Cheng Ching Hang presented the awards.

This year the event invited Wai Ka Fai to be the guest presenter to present Best Director to Jonathan Li Tsz Chun for DUST TO DUST, Best Screenplay to Sasha Chuk for FLY ME TO THE MOON, Best Actor to Wu Kang-Jen for FLY ME TO THE MOON, Best Actress to Yu Heung Ying for IN BROAD DAYLIGHT, Best film to MAD FATE. Wai Ka Fai said that the event already had 30 years of history. He has won 7 Best Screenplay and 1 Best Director Award. Speaking of his filmmaking advice, he said that like his Milky Way Image partner Johnnie To Kei Fung he had to have fire, knew what he was doing had meaning, and made movies he liked. This road has been very hard, films and box office sometimes would be hard to imagine. How would he overcome that? He said, "You have to have a sense of duty, shoot what you want to say and benefit the world. Although the road is very hard, you still have to walk it." He also pointed out that the life of a person was very short, but the life of film was very long. He encouraged new directors to not have such narrow vision and should widen their vision.

Best Actress Yu Heung Ying was teary eyed when she accepted the award. She was grateful that she luckily ran into a good character. "I am very grateful to be able to win this award, and very lucky to be able to run into this character. I want to thank the screen writer for persisting for 5 years, handing a character who held her ground, seek justice and never gave up to me. In my 8 years in the business I have also run into many good characters." Yu Heung Ying said that she was not particularly good, but she ran into a great team. She wanted to thank the cast and the crew. Was she confident about winning the Hong Kong Film Awards Best Actress? She said that she haven't thought about it. "Sounding old fashioned I would say I am already very happy being nominated, the award would only be a bonus, a present from heaven."

Winning Best Actor with FLY ME TO THE MOON (DAN YUEN YUN CHEUNG GAU), Wu Kang-Jen said in Cantonese that he felt very happy to be able to come to Hong Kong and make a movie because he grew up watching Hong Kong films and television. He also gave special thanks to director Stanley Kwan Kam Peng. 16 years ago when he was a model, Kwan asked him to perform in the film he produced, MIAO MIAO. He also said, "I would treat this time as the last performance, because I am from Taiwan, I don't need to come to Hong Kong to play a Hong Kong person." He also hoped that Hong Kong film would have new life and new beginning.

Wu Kang-Jen said that he felt very happy to win his first award in Hong Kong, but he would not have the time to celebrate because he would have to return to Taiwan for a movie. However Sunday he would come to Hong Kong again to attend the Asian Film Awards. Was he confident about winning at the Asian Film Awards? He said no. "Because the strong competition is too numerous, like (Tony) Leung Chiu Wai and Japanese actors. To be able to participate I am already very happy." As for the Hong Kong Film Awards next month, he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor. Was he confident? He humbly said, "No, I still have shortcomings, but I am already very happy to get to participate. It is a type of encouragement." He would like to make more Hong Kong films, revealed that he was in negotiation for them, and even joked that he would have to rent a home in Hong Kong.