47th Hong Kong International Film Festival | 30 Mar - 10 Apr 2023

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Hong Kong International Film Festival Society Executive Director Albert Lee confirms that the 47th edition of the long-running festival will return to its traditional slot and take place from 30 March to 10 April 2023 for 12 days.

The Society is committed to making world cinema accessible and affordable to the public. It organizes the annual flagship the Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF) and the Hong Kong – Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF) in March and April. Another annual highlight is the Summer International Film Festival (SummerIFF) held every August. The repertory HKIFF Cine Fan Programme was launched in April 2013 with the aim to enrich and deepen the experience of Hong Kong moviegoers through a monthly programme of contemporary, retrospective and thematic showcases. The Industry Office (HKIFF Industry) was set up in 2021 to coordinate the HKIFF Society's film industry activities. Promoting the development of non-mainstream film industry through co-production and providing support on festival strategies and overseas distribution (HKIFF Collection).

Please check back for more information as we ad more, you can also visit the Official Website for more information

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The 47th Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF47) will celebrate the 90th birth anniversary of the maverick Japanese director Itami Juzo with a complete retrospective of his ten films, all digitally restored in 4K.

The son of legendary director Itami Mansaku, Itami Juzo was born in Kyoto in 1933. Before making his mark as an actor with award-winning performances in Kon Ichikawa's The Makioka Sisters and Morita Yoshimitsu's The Family Game, the versatile Itami had successful careers in designing, writing, and even magazine editing.

A late starter, the then 51-year-old Itami directed his debut feature in 1984. The bawdy and witty satire THE FUNERAL signalled the arrival of a filmmaker who was not afraid to confront the absurdity of Japanese culture's traditional and conservative aspects.

Acclaimed for his rich filmography that abounds in humorous, sensual and surreal pleasures, Itami's best-known comedies – Tampopo (Dandelion) and THE SUPERMARKET WOMAN – showcase his gentle and whimsical sense of community spirit that celebrates the ordinary. A stylistic departure, the empathetic drama A QUIET LIFE, inspired by his brother-in-law and Nobel Prize laureate Oe Kenzaburo's novel, epitomises Itami's characteristic humanity.

Itami's collaboration with his wife and muse, actor Nobuko Miyamoto, brought fresh comedic perspectives to female-driven narratives. From berating corporate corruption in A TAXING WOMAN and its sequel, A TAXING WOMAN'S RETURN, to his satirical commentary on political conspiracy in A-Ge-Man X Tales of a Golden Geisha, Itami targeted shady practices and ills in the economically straitened post-Bubble Japanese society.

Before his untimely demise, Itami built a reputation as an enfant terrible of Japanese cinema. His films, many of them international hits, are original, often mischievous, and constantly pushing boundaries. THE LAST DANCE and his final work, MARUTAI, exemplify Itami's disdain against violence, intimidation and even mortality by drawing from his personal experience about the mob attack after the release of MINBO OR THE GENTLE ART OF JAPANESE EXTORTION. They are powerful statements proclaiming his advocacy for fairness and justice, which have been his lifelong themes.

After last year's adjournment, HKIFF47 returns to its traditional dates. It will take place from 30 March to 10 April, featuring physical, in-theatre screenings and audience-engagement events alongside a bespoke online programme. HKIFF47 will unveil this year's complete programme in March.
The Itami Juzo Retrospective will feature the following films:
1984  THE FUNERAL《葬禮》
1985  Tampopo (Dandelion)《蒲公英》
1987  A TAXING WOMAN《查之女》（又名：《女稅務員》）
1988  A TAXING WOMAN'S RETURN《查之女續集》（又名：《女稅務員2》）
1990  A-Ge-Man X Tales of a Golden Geisha《鴻運女》
1992  MINBO OR THE GENTLE ART OF JAPANESE EXTORTION《民暴之女》
1993  THE LAST DANCE《大病人》
1995  A QUIET LIFE《靜靜的生活》
1996  THE SUPERMARKET WOMAN《超市之女》
1997  MARUTAI《被監護之女》（又名：《受監護的女人》）

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The 47th Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF47) brings together seven comedies and suspense thrillers under Fantastic Beats to inspire younger cinemagoers.

Ranging from intimate romance to asexual identity and even a ghost marriage, the ever-popular section features work by filmmakers from Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, and Latvia.

It highlights the diverse performances of some of the most eminent actors in Japan. Suzuki Ryohei co-stars with Miyazawa Hio, recent winner of Best Supporting Actor at the Asian Film Awards, in Matsunaga Daishi's intimate Egoist, which captures moments of intense sexuality and complex emotions in a closeted relationship. In contrast, Tamada Shinya's I am What I am portrays an asexual character who dares to dream and be different, anchored by Drive My Car star Miura Toko's nuanced performance. Maeda Tetsu extends from individual emotions to social concerns in Do Unto Others, where Matsuyama Kenichi and Nagasawa Masami enter into difficult debates about righteousness and personal conviction.

Mixing supernatural, romance, action, thriller and absurdity into one, Cheng Wei-Hao's 2022 Golden Horse Film Festival closing film, Marry My Dead Body, explores myriad social issues and gender stereotypes through a bromance ghost story. Making his directorial debut, actor Kai Ko delivers a shockingly violent comedy about juvenile delinquents in Bad Education, based on a galvanising script by Giddens Ko.

Thai directing twins Wanweaw and Weawwan Hongvivatana create a winning mix of nostalgia, likeable performances and an adorable tale of sisterhood in You & Me & Me. Also derived from her experience, Latvian director Signe Baumane's coming-of-age story, My Love Affair with Marriage, is a visually ravishing animated odyssey searching for love and happiness.

HKIFF47 will take place from 30 March to 10 April, featuring screenings and audience-engagement events in theatres and online.

Get tickets here

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The 47th Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF47) announces additional screenings in response to overwhelming demands, with tickets going on sale from 10am on Thursday, 23 March, through URBTIX.

Among these additional screenings are sold-out films by master filmmakers, including Hong Sang-soo's enigmatic in water, as well as two restored classics – Edward Yang's biting satire A Confucian Confusion and Hsu Hsiao-Ming's monumental thriller Dust of Angels.

Cinephiles who missed out initially will now have another chance to catch Iranian director Houman Seyedi's World War III, Vitaly Mansky and Yevhen Titarenko's Eastern Front, Anthony Chen's Drift and Zhang Lu's The Shadowless Tower.

Two exciting films by promising new filmmakers vying for the coveted Firebird Award are in no less popular demand. They are Spanish young director Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren's 20,000 Species of Bees, in which the eight-year-old Sofía Otero became the youngest person ever to win Best Leading Performance at Berlinale, and Elvis Lu's A Holy Family, which garnered the Grand Prize and Best Documentary at the Taipei Film Festival.

Taking place this year from 30 March to 10 April for 12 days, HKIFF47 will go hybrid, featuring screenings, exhibitions, and audience-engagement events in theatres and online. The complete programme and screening schedule are available at HKIFF's.

Tickets and full schedule is available: here